The Marauders and the Phoenix Blessed
by AliceBlackwood
Summary: Sometimes fate can be cruel and what Arella Danvers learns is that it's never what it seems to be. Through love, laughter and a little mischief, along with a few good friends, she must learn who she is and what she can become. SB/OC, James/Lily
1. Prologue & Chapter 1

Prologue

May 12, 1960

Susanna di Orcus sat silently in the home of Albus Dumbledore with a small sleeping baby girl in her arms. The child's name was Arella Deirdre d'Athane and she was both the daughter of an old friend of Susanna's as well as her goddaughter. The child descended from an ancient race of people whom the modern witch and wizard descended from. Commonly they were called Guardians but their true name is unknown. They were the children of gods blessed with the purest magic. However, as time passed on their race separated into two classes. The first and highest class was the Lucianes; they were those with the purest and strongest blood. The Nocturne was the second class and while they were called Guardians they were those whose ancestors were made Guardians by the Luciane. Tonight, however, Susanna, a Luciane herself, held in her arms the last descendant of the House of d'Athane, one of the most powerful of the remaining Luciane families. On this night the child's father died at the hands of another Guardian, a Nocturne, whom was following a mysterious and yet powerful wizard.

"Albus I need your help," Susanna said her voice soft. "She has to go into hiding."

"Understandable, as a Luciane the other Guardians will try to use her to their advantage. Not to mention that she may have been the target of the attack," Albus said as he poured tea for himself and Susanna.

"I intend to place her with a Muggle family. However, I wish to have her sent to Hogwarts when she is old enough," Susanna explained as she looked at the child. "Her mother was a witch so she'll no doubt inherit the ability to use a witch's magic."

"Do you think it truly wise to place her with Muggles?" Albus asked.

"Yes…she'll be safest there. I'll place a small binding spell on her that will slow the growth of her Guardian powers," Susanna answered. "This child will be very powerful. She is Phoenix blessed although not the Phoenix's Chosen. She will still be powerful. You can see it Albus, Fawkes has been watching her intently since we arrived."

"Yes I have noticed that," Albus said as he stole a glance at his friend and indeed the magnificent bird was intently and almost protectively watching the small child. "And according to you he is the legendary bird Endsong, one of the two heralds of the Phoenix."

"Fawkes is most certainly Endsong. I told you that when you befriended the bird," Susanna smiled as she too gazed at the bird.

"I will make sure that Arella attends Hogwarts, although I'm sure her wizarding blood has assured that already," Albus said firmly. "I will also ask Fawkes to watch over her as she grows up."

"Something I'm sure the bird will do anyway, right Fawkes?" Susanna said as she turned her gaze back to the baby. Fawkes let out a soft cry in reply. Arella yawned and began to wake at the sound of the bird. The bird lifted itself into the air and then quickly landed near the child. He gave out soft notes in song that made the child open her eyes and giggle as she reached for the bird.

The next morning Susanna took the four month old child to live with two Muggle parents, Edward and Charlotte Danvers.

Chapter One: My friend the Werewolf

July 12, 1966

Years had passed and the once four month old child became a kind hearted six year old child. She had medium brown hair that had faint natural red highlights in it and dark sapphire blue eyes. Her skin was naturally pale and in the summer sun became faintly freckled around her nose. At six years old her adoptive family had just recently moved and the young girl was exploring her new neighborhood. As she walked down the street she saw a large red bird flying overhead. In past years she had seen this bird before but always from afar. Quickly Arella ran after the bird hoping that she might actually get to see the bird up close. The bird led her to the small playground in the neighborhood before disappearing entirely.

"Wait!" Arella called out as she lost sight of the bird. "Please come back!"

"Who are you talking to?" a new soft spoken asked. Arella gasped and turned around to see a boy her age looking at her curiously. He was roughly the same height as Arella and had light brown hair and curious hazel eyes.

"The red bird that I followed here," Arella replied as she looked at the boy.

"Oh…" the boy said softly before he started to walk away.

"Wait! What's your name?" Arella asked as she stopped the boy. He was the first actual person she had met since moving here.

"Um…Remus, Remus Lupin," he replied clearly not use to other children talking to him.

"I'm Arella Danvers I just moved here," Arella said brightly as she smiled at Remus. "Would you like to be friends with me? I don't have any."

"You want to be friends with me?" Remus asked as if she were a little insane.

"Yeah…is there something wrong with that?" Arella asked a little confused. Remus shook his head slowly and said quietly "I guess not…"

"Do you not want to be friends with me?" Arella asked in a small voice and her eyebrows scrunched down in a bit of confusion.

"Friends," Remus said with a happy smile as he held out his hand. Arella took his hand and echoed the word friends. And friends they were.

The two became very close and soon, by accident of course, Arella discovered her friend's condition. She discovered it when she noticed a large cut on Remus's arm. The cut itself looked as though a claw of some kind had cut him. At first he was evasive but under Arella's constant questioning the young boy finally blew up and yelled "I'm a Werewolf!" at her. Afraid that she would abandon him the young boy instead ran home and away from her. Arella left Remus alone for a grand total of twenty-four hours before she went over to his home and asked to see him.

She was greeted by Mr. Lupin who told her that Remus wasn't feeling well and couldn't have visitors.

"Yes sir," Arella said softly as she looked at Mr. Lupin sadly. "Could you please give this to him for me? My mother made extra and told me to bring Remus some since he loves fudge so much." Arella handed Mr. Lupin a small hand wrapped box.

"Of course Arella," Mr. Lupin said with a smile as he took the gift from Arella.

"Good bye Mr. Lupin and please tell Remus I said to feel better," Arella said as she began to leave.

"I will Arella and good-bye," Mr. Lupin said before he closed the door of the house. Mr. Lupin looked at the box happy to see his son have at least one friend. He went to the boy's room and knocked on the door.

"Remus, your friend Arella was here to see you, she left you a present," he said as he opened the door. Remus lay on his bed with a book in his hands. He looked up at his father curiously. Mr. Lupin placed the box on the dresser and said "I'll leave it here for you. Are you feeling any better?"

"A little," Remus replied softly. Mr. Lupin nodded, thinking that maybe he and Arella had gotten into a fight and that was why his son was faking illness. "I'll leave you to rest then," he said before he left the bedroom, closing the door behind him. Once his father was gone Remus got off his bed and went over to his dresser to retrieve the box. Opening it Remus found the fudge and a handwritten note from Arella.

_Dear Remus, _

_I'm sorry I was bothering you. I want you to know that you are my friend no matter what. I don't care that you are a warewolf (I think that is how its spelled). That doesn't change who you are to me. Your my best friend Remus and nothing will ever change that. _

_I'm not really sure how your being a warewolf changes anything cause your my friend. _

_Please be my friend forever_

_Arella Danvers_

Remus smiled as he re-read the letter as he munched on the fudge she had also given him. Afterwards every month Arella would bring over fudge for Remus to have after the full moon.

June 1971

Susanna di Orcus and Professor Albus Dumbledore approached the Lupin home with news that young Remus Lupin would be permitted to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Mr. Lupin answered the door shocked and afraid at the sight of the Headmaster.

"Professor Dumbledore," Mr. Lupin said as he opened the door further to allow the two guests entrance into his home. "I take it Remus will not be permitted to attend Hogwarts."

"Quite the contrary Mr. Lupin, I have with me his acceptance letter," Albus said with a kind smile. "Perhaps we could discuss the reason for our visit with Remus as well." Mr. Lupin nodded and called for his son to join them in the living room. Remus walked into the living room curious as to why his father wanted him.

"Yeah Dad?" Remus asked.

"Remus this is Professor Albus Dumbledore the Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," Mr. Lupin explained.

"Hello Remus," Albus said kindly to the eleven year old boy. "This is Professor Susanna di Orcus a teacher at Hogwarts."

"Hello Remus," Susanna said in her soft voice.

"Why are you here?" Remus asked, having the same fears as his father.

"I believe this belongs to you," Albus said as he handed Remus his letter. Silently Remus opened up the letter and silently read it to himself.

**HOGWARTS SCHOOL **

_**of **_**WITCHCRAFT **_**and **_**WIZARDRY**

**Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore**

_**(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock**_

_**Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)**_

**Dear Mr. Lupin, **

** We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclose a list of all necessary books and equipment. **

** Term begins September 1. We await your owl no later than July 31. **

**Yours sincerely, **

Minerva McGonagall

**Minerva McGonagall,**

_**Deputy Headmistress**_

Remus looked up from the letter shock written all about his face.

"What about…" Mr. Lupin began.

"I am taking precautions to have Remus taken to a secure place for his transformations each full moon. With these precautions in place I believe it is only fair to have Remus attend school," Albus interrupted. "However there is a favor I have to ask of the two of you."

"And that would be?" Mr. Lupin asked.

"You're friends with Miss Arella Danvers am I correct?" Susanna asked, although it sounded more like a statement.

"Yes, she's my best friend," Remus replied.

"Miss Danvers is a witch herself, however she has no knowledge of this," Albus explained. "We would like the two of you to come with us to help explain Hogwarts to her. I believe she will take all of it better knowing that her best friend will also be with her."

Mr. Lupin and Remus agreed to go to the Danvers home to inform the Muggle family that their daughter would be attending Hogwarts.

Edward Danvers was currently mowing his lawn when he saw his daughter's best friend, his father, and older man, and the woman who had given Edward and Charlotte their daughter. Edward turned off the lawn mower as the small group approached the lawn.

"Mr. Lupin a pleasure to see you," Edward said as he greeted Mr. Lupin. "Remus, how are you?"

"I'm fine Mr. Danvers," Remus said quietly.

"Susanna, never thought I'd have the pleasure of seeing you again," Edward said as he turned his gaze to Susanna. Susanna was a tall and intimidating woman with dark hair that seemed to have a dark green tint to it and deep reddish-brown eyes. Her skin was also a deep tan and utterly flawless; in truth the woman seemed eerily perfect.

"We've come to see Arella," Susanna explained. "My friend here is Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of a school that would be well suited for Arella."

Edward nodded and said "Arella's in the backyard with Charlotte." He then led the group through the side gate and into the backyard. In the distance you could hear Arella's complaint about having to help with the gardening.

"This is boring," Arella whined. "And it's hot."

"Charlotte, Arella," Edward called out to his wife and daughter. The now eleven year old Arella looked up to see that her father wasn't alone. Charlotte, a petit blonde woman with charming green eyes, stood and the moment she saw Susanna knew something was up.

"Susanna…what brings you here?" Charlotte asked. Arella looked to her mother and then to Remus with a 'what is going on look' on her face. Remus gave her a reassuring smile as he read her look.

"Just business Charlotte," Susanna answered. "My friend here is the Headmaster to a school that Arella was signed up to attend."

"By who," Charlotte asked with a bit of a protective edge to her voice.

"Magic," Albus replied. "You see Arella is a witch."

"Excuse me?" Charlotte asked this time her voice very cold.

"Charlotte I told you on the night I gave you Arella that she was different, magical I believe was the term I used. And she is. Arella's biological father was a wizard and she has inherited his magic," Susanna explained. "Albus is here to explain his school to you. It's a place where she can learn to harness her power safely."

"We should take this inside," Edward said as he shared a look with his wife. The group went to the dining room and everyone took a seat. Once everyone was seated Albus handed Arella a letter. Silently Arella opened the letter and read it to herself.

"So…I'm a witch," Arella said slowly once she finished reading. She looked up at Albus as she said this, her eyes boring into his as if she saw his very soul.

"Yes Miss Danvers you are," Albus replied. Arella didn't say anything for a long moment.

"It explains so much for you doesn't it," Susanna said quietly. "When you have nightmares the room shakes, how you sometimes know what someone will say before they say it, all the strange occurrences that happen around you." Arella brought her gaze to Susanna when the older woman finished but still said nothing. The conversation then turned to Albus explaining about the school with Mr. Lupin adding in something here and there. It was also explained that Remus would also be attending and would be with Arella if she chose to go. During the entire conversation Arella had her eyes locked on Susanna, who in turn was also staring at Arella. It seemed as though the two were having their own private conversation.

"I wish to go," Arella said suddenly when she heard Albus mentioning her going once again. "I'll attend at Hogwarts."

"Are you sure Arella?" Charlotte asked her daughter. Arella turned her gaze away from Susanna and looked to her mother. "Yes Mama I want to go," Arella said firmly.

"A wise decision Arella," Albus said with an approving nod.

"Since you have chosen to go you will need this," Susanna said as she pulled out a small key from around her neck. She handed the key to Arella. "That is the key to your biological father's vault. He and your mother left it for you to use during your schooling."

"Vault?" Edward asked confused.

"She has a vault at Gringotts, a Wizarding bank," Susanna explained. "She, of course, has a larger inheritance left to her by her mother; however, she cannot access it until she is of age."

"If you'd like I could take Arella to buy her school supplies when I take Remus," Mr. Lupin offered, knowing that Edward and Charlotte would have no idea how to get to Diagon Alley.

"I think that might be a wise idea, Edward?" Charlotte said to her husband who nodded in agreement. Plans were then made by all parties and in mid July Mr. Lupin, Remus, and Arella all went to get their supplies from Diagon Alley.

The rest of that summer went by quickly. Both Remus and Arella would spend afternoons together pouring over the schoolbooks they had gotten from Diagon Alley; each of them getting more and more nervous about attending school but both relieved to be going together.

September 1, 1971

Arella pushed the cart that carried her trunk towards platforms nine and ten. Earlier in the summer Mr. Lupin had explained how to get onto the platform so she wouldn't get to lost. Unfortunately her parents could only drop Arella off as they both had work today. In a few minutes Arella found the two platforms. Ahead of her she saw a boy her age with round glasses and dark messy hair being accompanied by his parents. Arella watched silently as they went through the barrier. Seeing them gave Arella a bit more confidence and she quickly went through the barrier alone. The other side took Arella's breath away. A scarlet steam engine was waiting next to a large platform packed with people. A sign overhead read Hogwarts Express, ten fifty. Arella pushed her cart forward through the crowds of people. Some of the carriages were already full with students. Arella pressed through the crowd to where she saw an empty compartment. When she finally got there she saw the boy who had gone through the barrier before her with another boy. He was also the same age as Arella herself but he had black hair that was cut to his shoulders and was a bit curly. Both were working to get their trunks into the compartment. Silently Arella pushed her cart to the compartment. The two boys looked up at her as she did so.

"Need help?" the boy with the glasses asked. Arella looked over at him and replied "Probably." The two boys stopped what they were doing and went to her cart. They lifted up her trunk and slid it into the compartment.

"Thank you," Arella said with a smile.

"No problem, I'm James Potter and this is my friend Sirius Black," James said jovially as Sirius smirked.

"Arella Danvers," Arella responded politely. "And again thank you." James nodded and the two then went back to putting Sirius's trunk into the compartment.

"See you around," Arella said before she left them to find herself a seat on the train and hopefully find Remus as she had yet to see her friend. Arella wandered through the train in hopes of finding him but she didn't so instead she just chose an empty compartment and took a seat. A few minutes later the compartment door opened and a red headed girl popped her head in.

"Is anyone sitting here?" she asked politely.

"No, no one's sitting there," Arella replied as she looked up at the girl.

"Oh, do you mind if my friend and I sit with you, everywhere else is full," she said as she opened the door further to reveal her dark haired male friend. His hair was shoulder length and very straight.

"You can sit here," Arella said softly with a small warm smile gracing her face.

"Thank you!" the other girl said happily. "I'm Lily Evans and this is my friend Severus Snape."

"I'm Arella Danvers," Arella replied as she watched the girl and boy take the seats across from her. Lily was obviously red-headed and had stunning green eyes with light colored skin. Severus, however, seemed dark all over with the exception of his pale skin.

"I can't wait until we reach Hogwarts, Severus has been telling me all about it all summer," Lily said excitedly.

"My friend Remus was doing the same for me. Plus I picked up a couple of extra books when I got my school ones and read those during the summer," Arella said just as excited as Lily. Soon the conversation became quite loud with laughter as the two girls talked. Eventually they got Severus to join them in conversation as well.

The rest of the ride to Hogwarts was uneventful, as was the boat ride to the castle itself; although, Arella was stunned to silence at the sight of the massive castle when she first saw. Once inside the castle the first year students were greeted by an intimidating elderly woman named Professor McGonagall, who explained each of the Houses and the expectations of the school. Arella only half listened when Severus said the he'd probably be in Slytherin. Within the group Arella saw her friend Remus standing with three other boys. Two of them were the boys who had helped Arella earlier, James Potter and Sirius Black, while the third was someone that Arella didn't know. Soon the group of first years was led into the Great Hall by Professor McGonagall. Nervous, as well as curious, Arella looked around as she walked with the other first years into the Great Hall. All the older students were watching these new younger students either curiously, wanting to see who was new to the school, or bored, having already done the same walk themselves. Candles danced in the air and the one thing that caught Arella's eye the most was the ceiling. Tonight is showed a clear night sky with hundreds of stars glowing brightly, each twinkling as she passed beneath them. A nudge from Lily, however, tore Arella's gaze from the ceiling and she turned her attention to her new friend. Lily pointed towards Professor McGonagall, who had now stopped and stood by the large podium beside her on a stool sat a worn looking hat. The witch held a piece of parchment that had the names of each of the new students. The Professor then called out the first name on the list.

"Abbott, Michael!"

The boy who had been called walked up to the stool that held the Sorting Hat. Professor McGonagall picked up the hat and the boy sat gingerly onto the stool. Once seated the teacher placed the hat onto the boy's head and a few minutes later the hat called out "Hufflepuff!" After the first person was called forward Arella stopped paying attention to the sorting ceremony and her gaze fell upon the beautiful red bird that sat on the top of a familiar person's chair. The person was of course the headmaster but it was the bird that intrigued Arella. It was the same bird that Arella had often seen flying near her home when she was younger.

'_Why would I see the Headmaster's bird at home?'_ Arella thought as she gazed at the bird that was also looking directly at her as if it understood what she was thinking.

'_Why wouldn't you?'_ a soft and gentle male voice asked in Arella's mind.

'_Who are you?'_ Arella thought with narrowed eyes.

"_Endsong…or as I prefer Fawkes,"_ the bird replied. '_And I was watching over you Phoenix Blessed.'_

'_Why?'_ Arella asked mentally. _'And how am I talking to you?'_

'_I wanted to protect you'_ was the bird's reply. _'We are talking because we are connected. All will become clearer as you grow.'_

"Black, Sirius!"

The familiar name broke the conversation Arella and the phoenix was having in secret. Arella watched as the hat was put onto the black haired boy. Within a few minutes the hat called out Gryffindor. The boy hopped off the stool clearly happy about being in Gryffindor as he walked over to his house table.

"Well that was a surprise," Severus muttered offhandedly.

"Why?" Arella asked.

"He's a pureblood and his whole family is big on purity of blood," Severus answered simply.

"Oh…" Arella uttered distractedly. The rest of the B names and C names went by quickly and soon the Professor got to Arella's name.

"Danvers, Arella!"

Nervously Arella walked through the students in front of her, passing by Remus and his other two friends as well, towards the podium and stool. She walked up to the stool and carefully sat on it. Professor McGonagall gently placed the hat upon her head.

"_Hmmm….interesting, very interesting, a child of the House of d'Athane….hmmm you would do well in each of the houses. You are loyal and just but too courageous for Hufflepuff. There is wisdom to you and you could fit in nicely with Ravenclaw and you are pure enough for Slytherin. Yes you could do very well there little d'Athane. Hmmm….but your courage, you courage is strong and your kindness matches it,"_ the Hat said into Arella's mind.

"_My last name is Danvers, not d'Athane_," Arella thought to the Hat.

"_It is now but it wasn't always,"_ the hat replied. _"Where do you think you belong?"_

"_I don't know…"_ Arella replied. _"I'll take where ever you put me. I know I'll do fine in any of them. Although I'm not sure I'll like it in Slytherin."_

"_No…Hmmm….yes I think I shall place you there,"_ the hat said softly before shouting "Gryffindor!"

Arella let out a sigh, thankful she wasn't in Slytherin. Something about the house made her skin crawl. Quickly she got off the stool and went over to the table assigned to the Gryffindor students. The rest of the ceremony passed quickly. Lily was placed in Gryffindor as well as was Remus, James and their other friend Peter Pettigrew. Arella and Lily sat together with two of their new year-mates, Alice McKinnon and Mina Carter. The feast continued, the Headmaster giving a welcoming speech and reminding the students of the rules. Once the feast was over the houses then retreated to their common rooms. The rest of Arella's first year continued to be uneventful. Arella became close to three of her year mates while the other two she kept at arm's length. Darla Rowe and Roslyn Trengrove were both too snobbish for Arella's taste and she only spoke to them when necessary. Arella and Remus both remained friends, however, they each spent more time with their new friends verses each other. It didn't help that Remus and his friends always seemed to be pulling pranks either. The ones that irritated Arella the most were the ones that were against Severus as she had become sort of friends with him because of Lily.

The first four years passed quietly for Arella. She and Remus kept an acquaintance friendship, as Remus was always busy with his new friends and Arella was busy with both her classes and her own new friends. It would be fifth year that our story truly begins.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Forgot to add this into the first chapter, but all the well known characters from the actual books belongs to J.K. Rawling, I'm only borrowing them. All other characters, such as Arella and Susanna belong to me. Thanks for reading!

Chapter Two: The Beginning

Arella sat silently reading in an empty compartment on the Hogwarts Express. She had arrived early to the train, having craved a bit of quiet before she met up with her friends. However, Fate had conspired against her with the sound of the compartment door opening.

"Danvers mind if we join you?" a male voice asked interrupting the brunette from her reading. Arella looked up to see James Potter, Sirius Black, her childhood friend Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew all crowded at the entrance of the compartment.

"Why?" Arella asked as she stared at the four boys. Traditionally Arella had very little to do with the four self named Marauders as a whole. While she did spend time with Remus it was usually just the two of them.

"Most of the other compartments already have two or more people in them," James explained with a charming grin. "Didn't you notice all the noise?"

"No…I must have been too deep into my book," Arella replied thoughtfully. With a sigh she closed her book. "I suppose you can sit in here."

"Don't sound so happy Danvers," Sirius grinned as he sat down opposite of Arella. "You get the pleasure of enjoying the ride to Hogwarts with the Marauders."

"I'm just giddy with delight Black, really I am," Arella replied deadpanned causing Remus laughed as he sat down next to her.

"Sarcasm doesn't suit you Ella," Remus retorted jovially. James and Peter sat next to Sirius, James occupying the space between Sirius and Peter.

"So how was your summer Arella?" Peter asked, his voice sounding nervous.

"Alright I suppose. I spent most of it studying. I went over to Lily's for a little while; we went shopping and did a few other girl things. It was actually quite peaceful," Arella answered offhandedly.

"Th-that's nice," Peter stuttered quickly. Of the Marauders Peter was the last person one would suspect to be one. He didn't have the charm that seemed to radiate off of Sirius or the optimism that came naturally to James. And with his own quiet studious nature Remus seemed to balance back the two ring leaders. Peter on the other hand was, well odd. He didn't talk much and really it always seemed like he was simply following the others around.

"What about all of you? Anything interesting?" Arella asked, trying to keep conversation going. Sitting in silence with them seemed to be just a tad bit awkward. With a glance at Remus she added "Don't answer that, I already know what you did."

"Love you too Ella," he chuckled quietly. Considering the two of them lived in the same neighborhood the childhood friends had spent the summer together.

"Not much, spent most of it at James's house," Sirius answered, sharing a devious glance with the other ring leader.

"I went to Italy with my parents," Peter said quickly.

"Really?" Arella asked surprised, she hadn't really expected the boy to continue with the conversation. "Was it nice?"

"Y-yeah," Peter replied meekly.

"That's good," Arella said with a smile that made Peter blush. He almost looked like he wanted to add more but, like always, he was overshadowed by James and Sirius as they began to discuss their beginning of the year prank.

Arella only half listened to the plans of the Marauders as she returned her attention to her book. Truthfully, she was thankful for that they were seemingly ignoring her. The rest of the train ride went pass quickly, although Arella was blind to the glances that Peter kept glancing at her. However, the other three Marauders were not so blind to them.

Upon arrival at the station Arella was forced, once again, into the company of the Marauders during the carriage ride to the School. Once again Arella was able to escape into her book, but this time she didn't make any effort to listen in on what the boys were talking about. She figured the less she knew the better off she would and it would of course give her plausible deniability when the pranksters pulled off their newest trick. Once the carriage stopped at the School entrance Arella immediately vacated the carriage to go off to find her dorm mates. She didn't get far though when Remus stopped her to ask if she sit with him and his friends during the feast. She promised to sit as close as possible since she was sure Lily would want to sit with her as well.

It didn't take Arella long to find Lily. The girl's bright red hair was a dead give away in a crowd. The two girls mutually saw one another and Lily pushed through the crowd to get to her dorm mate.

"Ella!" Lily exclaimed as she wrapped her arms around the brunette, hugging her tightly. "I missed you!"

"Lils! We saw each other last week!" Arella laughed as she returned the hug just as fiercely.

"Doesn't me I can't miss you!" Lily replied, letting Arella go. "Come on lets go find us a spot at the table."

"Um…actually can we sit near the Marauders? Remus asked if I would sit near him," Arella asked, putting as much pleading into her eyes as she could. Lily held little love for the Marauders, especially since their favorite target seemed to be her own childhood friend Severus Snape.

"Ew! Ella! The Marauders? Really? Do we have to?" Lily whined childishly. She hated being near them and avoided it as much as possible.

"Please? It'll be by Remus and you know you don't hate him like you do James or Sirius," Arella replied.

"Fine," Lily muttered. "But you owe me, big time." Arella smiled happily while hooking her arm through Lily's. "Believe me Lils, I know I owe you."

Upon seeing Lily and Arella approaching him and his friends Remus made a point to sit so that he was between the two groups. He hoped it would at least make it easier on Lily, who could not stand James. James, however, absolutely adored Lily. He had even gone as far as saying he planned on marrying the girl once or twice last year. The last time he pronounced to his friends his intentions was at the end of last year and he vowed that this year was the year Lily would go out with him. Unfortunately Remus had forgotten about this when he had asked Arella to sit with them. Upon seeing the red head of his affections James decided that it was best to start the year off with a bang.

"Lily Evans," James began as he leaned across the table and as close to Lily as he possibly could. As is natural with hearing one's name Lily looked up at James confused as to why he was even talking to her.

"What Potter?" Lily demanded as she glared at the glasses wearing Marauder.

"Lily," he began putting as much charm into his face as he possibly could. "Will you go on a date with me?

"Wait…what?" Confusion and disgust filled Lily's face while the remaining Marauders and Arella all looked at one another. Sirius seemed to be having a hard time keeping a straight face, having known that James was planning this. While Peter eyed Lily with apprehension and Remus and Arella remained silent but ready to put out any fires; both real and metaphorical.

"You're seriously asking me out?" Lily clarified her voice strangely calm.

"Yes Lily Flower I am being completely serious," he replied while his eyes bore into Lily. The pair stared at one another for what seemed like a long moment but in reality it was like half a millisecond before Lily broke out laughing. James's eyebrows came together in confusion, not understanding why Lily was laughing; maybe he broke her?

"Potter I wouldn't go out with you if you were the last bloke on earth," she laughed.

"Why?" James asked confused at her refusal, because really who could refuse him? Angry that she was laughing at him, not to be confused with laughing with him and lastly, and he would only ever admit this under duress, hurt that she refused him at all. Little did he know that this was the beginning of a long line of refusals.

"You're an arrogant, selfish, conceited prat who takes joy out of torturing First years. On top of that, you bully my best friend, why would I ever want to go out with you?" Lily retorted a little harshly. "Potter you are the last person I would ever go out with." James remained silent for a few moments, pondering what Lily had said. There were at least a dozen different things he could have said that would have, while not gotten Lily to go out with him today, would have at least laid a foundation for James's future attempts in winning her over. However, not a single one of them came spewing out of his mouth. No, his response was instead "But…how are we supposed to get married if you won't go out with me?" He asked it like was the most obvious of things, as if she was already suppose to know that they were to get married.

"Hell will freeze over before I ever marry you Potter," Lily scowled as she got up and left to sit with her and Arella's other dorm mates, Mina and Alice. James stared after the red head confused, much to the amusement of those around him.

"Well I guess that means I won't be sitting with you much this year Remus," Arella commented as she struggled not to laugh at James's confused face.

"You don't always have to sit with Evans, Danvers," Sirius laughed, having no problem with laughing at his friend. "Sorry mate looks like you're gonna have to marry someone else."

"No I won't Evans will come around eventually," James said confidently, returning his gaze to his dinner. "I'm telling you by seventh year she'll be my girlfriend."

"So you're not going to go out with anyone except Lily?" Arella clarified, a little shocked at the boy's devotion.

"Exactly," James replied.

"You're insane mate," Sirius chuckled.

After dinner Arella left the Marauders to go to the dorm she shared with the other Gryffindor Fifth years. Upon entering the dorm she was immediately confronted by an annoyed Lily Evans.

"Just what are you doing hanging around them?" Lily demanded, her arms folded across her chest in an attempt to look angry.

"Lils, Remus has been my friend for a long time and so I decided to be around his friends, there is nothing wrong with that," Arella replied, sighing. "Besides they're not that bad."

"Well…I suppose Remus isn't. He's at least responsible," Lily said grudgingly.

"Just please don't make it hard for me to have a friendship at school with Remus," Arella requested softly. Lily pursed her lips in thought. It wasn't a hard request and really she kinda owed Ella since she was always nice to her own childhood friend despite him not being her favorite person.

"I won't, I understand he's your best guy friend. I mean it's not like you're mean to Sev even though you don't like him," Lily relented knowing it was the right thing to do.

"Hey, it's not that I don't like him, I just don't like his Slytherin friends," Arella argued pointedly. And it was true, Severus Snape wasn't a bad guy he just had bad friends and they encouraged his bad choices.

"You and me both," Lily remarked dryly as she thought of the Slytherins in question. "So how long do you think Potter's gonna have this fascination with me?"

"Well…he's still determined," Arella answered cautiously as she sat down on her bed while Lily began gathering her things for her evening shower.

"Ugh…I hope he gives up soon," Lily muttered.

"Who gives up what?" Mina asked as she and Alice walked into the dormitory. The two girls, while the best of friends, were total opposites. Mina was almost the stereotypical blonde, looked great in whatever she wore and could be, on occasion, a little vain. Alice on the other hand was a typical tom boy. She kept her brunette hair short because she hated having to style it and really long hair got in the way when she was playing Quidditch.

"Potter thinks Lily is going to go out with him," Arella responded nonchalantly. Alice and Mina shared a look before they busted out laughing.

"Yeah that'll be the day the whole lot of them gives up pranking people," Mina laughed.

"You gotta admit though, Lily Potter does have a nice ring to it," Alice teased. Lily's eyes grew to the size of saucers at the thought of being called Lily Potter. Arella and Mina doubled over at the sight of Lily's horrified face. Seeing that her friends were only teasing her Lily scowled and headed towards the shower. "I hate you all!"

*Arella's Dream*

_I was running from something, something I could see. It was covered in shadow and it was coming after me. _

"_Arella!" Remus' frantic voice yelled. _

"_Helps us!" Lily frightened voice added. I could see them ahead of me engulfed in a fiery orange light. It was as if I was bringing my enemy to them. _

_-No…going to them would harm them- I thought as I tried to force myself to stop running. _

"_Blessed Child of the Phoenix," a hissing voice called out all around me. "You will be their end little Luciane."_

"_No! I won't hurt them!" I screamed. _

"_Keep running Danvers," Sirius's voice said. _

"_I don't understand!" I screamed. The fiery light my friends were in grew brighter and engulfed them entirely. Voices rose up and began chanting. _

"_Phoenix! Phoenix! Phoenix!" _

"_Where are my friends!" I screamed. _

"_Phoenix! Phoenix! Phoenix!"_

"_I'm not the Phoenix!" I said frantically._

"_You will serve my lord Phoenix Blessed," a new voice said. _

"_Give me my friends back!" I yelled._

"_Phoenix! Phoenix! Phoenix!" _

"_Arella!"_

*End Dream*

Lily was frantic as she tried to shake her friend awake but the dreaming girl wasn't responding.

"Arella wake up!" Lily whispered loudly. However, Arella wasn't responding. "Damn it." Lily turned back to her bed and went to her nightstand to grab her wand. With wand in hand Lily turned back to her friend and whispered "Aguamenti." A stream of water shot out of the end of the wand and splashed onto Arella in the face. The cold water did the trick and Arella sat up, clearly startled.

"What hit me?" Arella asked, although she already knew it was water.

"You were having a nightmare," Lily explained. "I had to wake you up."

"Thanks Lils," Arella said as she got out of her bed.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Lily asked softly, concern etching her voice. This wasn't the first time Lily had been forced to wake Arella from a nightmare. It also wasn't the first time she asked if her friend wanted to talk about what she dreamed about.

"No…but thank you Lily I know you want to be up early for classes tomorrow," Arella replied. The answer was the same as every other time Lily had asked.

"If you want me to I could stay up with you…" Lily began, hoping she might finally open up about it.

"No I'll be fine Lily. Thanks for waking me up," Arella said softly as she put on a robe and headed for the door. "Really Lily I just need to think." Lily looked like she was going to protest but instead nodded and went back to her bed.

"Try and get some sleep Ella," Lily said softly. Arella nodded before she went out the door and down to the Common Room. It was empty and the once roaring fire was now glowing embers. Silently Arella plopped down onto one of the sofas. She brought her knees up to her chest buried herself within her robe and just sat there staring at the low burning fire.

Minutes passed and Arella just sat there lost in thought. She was so deep in thought that she didn't hear the Marauders come in through the portrait door.

"Arella?" Remus said softly when he saw his friend sitting there. "Are you alright?" The sound of Remus's voice brought Arella out of her reverie and slightly startled her.

"Oh Remus, what are all of you doing up?" Arella asked as she looked over at them.

"We were just out getting a late night snack," Remus replied easily. "What about you?"

"Just a bad dream Remy," Arella answered her voice a little heavy from sleep.

"Are you okay?" Remus asked concerned. He knew how Arella's nightmares could be. When they were younger she would tell him about how the entire room would shake from them.

"Yes Remus, I'm fine, a little freaked out, but otherwise fine," Arella replied. Remus, however, didn't look convinced. He looked over at the other Marauders and the four of them silently agreed with him. The Marauders each took seats near Arella, Remus himself lifting Arella up and putting her in his lap.

"What are you doing?" Arella demanded, looking at each of them as they sat down.

"Making ourselves comfortable," Sirius replied with a cheeky grin.

"I can see that," Arella muttered. "Why?"

"Because you're a friend of Moony's and you're upset. Therefore it's our job to fix that," James replied seriously.

"You're not serious are you?" Arella asked incredulously, momentarily forgetting not use the word serious.

"No Danvers that would be me," Sirius laughed. Arella turned and scowled at Sirius, in the dim light his grey eyes seemed to be brighter than normal and were definitely full of mischief.

"That joke got old the first time it was ever said," Arella rolled her eyes, there was a reason she tried to not say that word.

"Aannyy way," James said as he glared at Sirius. "It's only right that we try to comfort you." Arella looked back at James and immediately caught hold of his eyes. James couldn't really describe what it was like to have Arella look into his eyes like this. It was as if she looked deep into his soul, saw every piece of him and was dissecting it to determine who he was and who he would become. The moment itself didn't last long but it felt like an eternity as well. Arella only had to blink and James was released from her spell.

"Thank you…really, I can see why Remus trusts all of you so much," Arella said softly, knowing that for her best friend trust was a big issue; considering what he was.

"With my life," Remus murmured so only Arella could hear and while for most they didn't mean much Arella knew that meant these three boys knew the whole truth and yet they were still his friends.

"So tell me the real reason all of you are up so late," Arella smiled knowingly. The four Marauders grinned sheepishly before James launched into an animate telling of the prank the four had plan for tomorrow. Sirius and Peter both added bits and pieces to the story while Arella simply dosed in Remus's arms. Eventually she appeared to be sleeping.

"Looks like our jobs done here," Sirius said softly when they all noticed Arella's apparent sleeping form.

"Ella," Remus said softly as he nudged her. Immediately Arella's blue eyes opened at the sound of her name.

"Oh…did I fall asleep on you Remus?" Arella asked with a yawn as she sat up.

"Just a little Ella, you should probably head up to bed," Remus said softly. Arella nodded sleepily before she got off of Remus and made her way to the girls' dormitory. The four Marauders watched her until she was out of their sight before they too went off to bed.

2nd A/N: Just an FYI while I have most of this story written out I don't know how often I'll get to upload it. I'm trying to edit it before each post and make it flow better. I appreciate reviews and love helpful critiques.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three:

A/N: Sorry about the lack of updates, really I haven't forgotten about this story. Anywho all standard disclaimers apply.

The first month of the school year passed by quietly and, for the most part, with little incident. Well, only if you don't count the mayhem that was caused by the Marauders. It started with their beginning of the year prank that consisted of dying the hair of the entire House of Slytherin in red and gold. Arella had to admit it was kinda funny to see the Slytherin girls freaking out. Lily, however, was furious when she saw her childhood best friend with red and gold hair. She spent a good forty-five minutes ranting about the idiocy and immaturity of the Marauders. Unfortunately for Severus Snape the Marauders overheard the last twenty minutes of the rant and, per James's persistence, spent the next week pranking Severus quite profusely. This then created a vicious circle that began to literally drive Arella nuts. The Marauders would prank Severus, Lily would find out and then Arella, Mina and Alice would be forced to endure Lily rant and rave. It came to the point where Arella was forced to beg Remus to convince his friends to leave the Slytherin alone. Thankfully, as October began the Marauders had tone down the pranking.

Classes were a bit harder this year, as there were the OWLs at the end of the year. Currently Arella was taking DADA, Potions, Transfiguration, Herbology, Charms, History of Magic, Astronomy, Divination, and Arithmancy. Most of her friends were in the same classes as her with the exception of Divination and Arithmancy. Lily chose to take Ancient Runes instead of Arithmancy, however, she did also take Divination. Remus took Ancient Runes and Muggle Studies. Peter took Care of Magical Creatures and Muggle Studies while James and Sirius both took Care of Magical Creatures and Divination.

Today began with Divination, which was held at the top of the North West Tower. The class was taught by Professor Susanna di Orcus, the same Susanna di Orcus Arella had met just before her first. She kept her circular classroom casually decorated with low tables and large floor pillows as seats. Each table would be set up with the tools needed for the day's lesson.

Upon entering the classroom Arella took a seat at a table near the front but closet to the entrance. She made herself comfortable before taking out her Divination notes. Today was a continuation of palm reading, or palmistry. The classroom tables each held a pillow at their center. While waiting for the rest of the other students to come into the classroom, as well as the class to start the young witch quietly reviewed her notes.

Sirius and James entered the classroom together. Today James planned to, once again, ask Lily out only this time it would be to the Halloween Dance. Sirius already knew the red headed witch would refuse, she done so every time his friend had asked, but James was his best mate and Sirius would help him in any way that he could. The plan was James would use today's lesson as a corny way and, in James's mind, romantic way of asking her. So Sirius would be the obedient friend and partner with Lily's usual partner, Arella Danvers. The girl in question was already seated at one of the tables with her notes out. It was sometimes eerie how similar she could be to Remus. That was one of the many reason Sirius had always tried, with some difficulty, to not fancy the girl. The biggest reason was the fact that she and Remus were childhood mates and it was an unwritten rule that Sirius was not to go out with her. James gave Sirius a quick nod before going on ahead to a different table away from where Arella was already seated. With a resigned sigh Sirius went to sit down across from the brunette witch. He didn't say anything at first when he sat, instead he watched her for a moment. Today her brown hair was partly pulled back from her face, allowing the rest of it to fall down her back. In the light of the classroom he could make out the faint natural red highlights of her hair. Her bright blue eyes was focused totally on her notes with her eye brows creased and her full lips pushed together creating a thin line as she read.

"Morning Danvers," Sirius said cheerfully; his sudden greeting startling the brunette witch, her eyes suddenly focusing on him.

"Morning Black," she replied, curious as to why the Heartthrob of Gryffindor was sitting across from her. "Don't you normally sit with James?" She questioned, cocking her head to the side while narrowing her eyes slightly.

"Normally," he replied as he got his own book from his bag, although he did not take out any notes as he never took them. "He wanted to try and sit with Lily today," Straightening her head Arella raised an eyebrow as she took in what Sirius had told her. Already knowing what her friend's reaction would be she remarked dryly "That boy is a glutton for punishment isn't he?"

Sirius burst out laughing that made it hard for Arella to keep a straight face. Biting her lip she added "Let me guess…he plans on asking Lily to the Halloween Dance today."

"Precisely Danvers," he grinned, glad to see he wasn't the only one who thought this plan of James was futile. "Guess it's pretty obvious."

"Again, that boy is a glutton for punishment," she giggled softly, shaking her head at the same time. "She'll tell him no, as usual."

"Oh I know she will but James insists on trying," Sirius smirked in agreement, already picturing the red head's reaction.

"Yes, but isn't saying that it's their destiny to go together a bit cheesy?" she questioned, her eyes glancing to her right as the Professor entered the room, signaling that class would be starting soon.

"Jeez Danvers are you sure you're not a psychic?" Sirius joked jovially, a great big smile spreading across his features. His smile was contagious, making Arella want to smile in return. She could understand why so many girls were in love with the mischievous and handsome Marauder. "Perhaps, perhaps not Black," Arella gave in and smiled mysteriously in return. Her own eyes held an air of mischief in them as she thought of her own secrets. "That's a need to know kind a thing." This caused Sirius to give out a low chuckle that only widened Arella's knowing smile. She had told the truth when she said it was a need to know and right now he didn't need to know.

Professor di Orcus suddenly called everyone's attention to her, officially ending all private conversations. The Professor was a soft spoken woman and often didn't speak much outside of class, however, when she spoke she held an aura that demanded both her students attention and their respect. It always held this bit of power in it that even restrained James and Sirius's from disturbing the class. While the Professor explained what they would be doing today Arella couldn't help but glance over to where James Potter sat alone. It seemed that Lily had not arrived to class yet, which was uncharacteristic of the red head. Arella only half listened as Professor di Orcus explained that they would be reading each other's palms and recording what they read. Both worried and curious Arella looked down at her notes and started to focus her mind to locate her missing friend. However, it seemed her worry was unfounded as Professor di Orcus stopped mid-sentence and looked to the door of her classroom.

"Miss Evans, thank you for finally joining us today," she said coolly as the opening door revealed the absent red head. Smiling she added "I hope all is well?" Lily blushed as she closed the door. "Very Professor, I'm sorry for being late."

"I already told you yesterday that you would and that I didn't mind so long as you made it here as quickly as possible. In fact you are earlier than I expected," the Professor assured Lily, a knowing smile forming on her lips. With a quick glance around her classroom she added "I believe Mr. Potter is the only one without a partner today."

It seemed that even the prospect of working with James couldn't ruin Lily's good mood. As she passed Arella the red head gave her friend a glowing smile. The two girls' eyes connected and Arella got a quick flash of Lily and Amos Diggory talking together. Lily was smiling brightly, clearly happy about what they were talking about. Already knowing about Lily's crush on the Seventh Year Hufflepuff it was obvious that he had been asking her to the dance.

"Poor James, he's too late," Arella murmured unintentionally. Sirius looked over at his partner confused. "Huh?" Without thinking she replied "Amos Diggory asked Lily to the Dance, it's why she was late." Before Sirius could question Arella on how she could possibly know that Professor di Orcus continued with her class and instructed everyone to practice by reading their partner's palm. Her mind once more focused on class Arella looked over at Sirius. "Shall we?" she asked as she motioned for Sirius's hand. "Ladies first then," he muttered as he gave his left hand to Arella. She gently took a hold of his hand, turning it palm side up. With her right index finger she gently traced the different lines on his hand. Quietly Sirius watched as Arella moved her finger against his skin. His mind was going a mile a minute, how could she have known about Amos? The only answer he could surmise was that Lily must have given Arella some sort of signal.

"You're loyal…with few but trustworthy friends," her voice like a quiet melody that caught Sirius's attention from his internal musings. "You'll face hardship and loss throughout your life, your life line…it has no definite end. In life you'll be sought by many but your heart will only belong to one. Your bond will be very strong."

Sirius stared at Arella as she spoke and he could help but notice that her eyes had glossed over and seemed to glow a little. She paused for a moment; her eyes seemed to be searching for something. "You'll be separated from those you love for many years…" Nearby Professor di Orcus watched both Sirius and Arella silently, listening to what Arella was saying. She knew she couldn't let Arella reveal too much of what she was seeing.

"Alright everyone I want each of you to switch with your partner," she said suddenly as she noticed Arella's eye take on a fiery glow.

"Um…Arella," Sirius said cautiously, unsure if he should forcefully stop her reading; he had also noticed that the glow in her eyes had taken on a more fiery aura to them. "Uh…it's my turn." Arella blinked, her focus utterly broken. "Huh?" She looked up at Sirius, her eyes now once more their natural clear blue without a hint of the glow they previously had. "Oh, sorry," quickly she released his hand, feeling a little embarrassed. Carefully, and with an ounce of caution, Sirius took Arella's hand into his own. He stared at the lines on her palm, uncertain at where to begin. Silently he turned back to his book. "Um…so your lifeline is this one." He traced his finger along her palm muttering more to himself than to his partner; Arella had made palm reading look so easy when she had done it, in an almost scary fashion that Sirius couldn't help but wonder if she might actually a real psychic.

Sirius stumbled through the rest of class and was never more thankful for it to end. James sulked over to Sirius and Arella while Lily stormed out of the classroom, a sour look adorning her face that revealed just how class had gone for them.

"No luck again mate?" Sirius asked as he stood, slinging his bag over his shoulder. Arella, on the other hand, was still putting her notes away into her own bag.

"She told me that I'm a delusional git and that she already has a date," James replied his voice mournful. "She won't even tell who either." Sighing he added "I don't get it, what's so wrong with going out with me?"

"Perhaps it has to do with the way you bully people. Or the way you ask her out, it's not subtle, it's loud and obnoxious," Arella non-chalantly as she closed up her bag. "Besides you won't have any competition next year. Amos will be gone by then."

"Amos?" James suddenly perked, his gaze focusing on Arella. "You mean Amos Diggory asked her?" The tone in his voice caused Arella to paused, her bag halfway onto her shoulder. Her mind was wheeling at what she had revealed it certainly wasn't something she was supposed to know. However, since Sirius already knew that she knew it was possible to salvage this without looking too strange.

"Um…probably," she replied, returning James's stare. "She's been wanting him to ask her since he commented on how pretty her smile is at the beginning of term. Lily's fancied him since the end of last year." Firmly placing her bag onto her shoulder Arella then quickly turned and left the two boys as she made her way out of the classroom. Sirius shook his head and went to catch up with Arella, his suspicions about her becoming stronger. The brunette had to be psychic with the way she was reading his palm earlier and knowing what had happened with Lily before class. Scowling James followed his friend and the Gryffindor girl, although at a slower pace.

"Way to go Danvers, now he's going to sulk for the rest of the year," Sirius joked when he caught up with Arella. From behind them James heard him and glared at his best mate. Internally Arella scowled as well, she had wanted to get away from the two boys.

"You know James maybe going out with someone else might help you. Allowing Lily to see what you could be like as a boyfriend might actually make her realize that she does like you and that you're not a complete and total git," Arella said as she looked back at James, silently wishing the two Marauders would leave her alone.

"You think?" James asked curiously, perking up a bit.

"Definitely," Arella replied with a nod. James became silent at he pondered what Arella had said. It was a good idea and it could possibly work. The rest of the walk to Potions was quiet; James still pondering Arella's solution while Sirius kept stealing glances at Arella, trying to figure out what had happened during Divination, while Arella kept her face as neutral as possible in hopes to keep her fears that Sirius suspected something hidden. Truth was he probably did considering she had told him about Amos and the weird reading that she given him during class. She still had no idea what had come over her; it was like someone else was talking through her. When they arrived to the Potions classroom Arella gave a mental shrug, hoping that she did nothing else suspicious then Sirius would think it was all a fluke. The brunette happily parted ways from the two boys upon entering the classroom so she could take her usual seat next to Mina. She had no desire to spend another class partnered with one of the two boys. Unlike Divination Lily liked to sit with Severus Snape since the two didn't get to have many classes together. As Arella sat down she noticed that Remus had also arrived and, as usual, was partnered with Peter. More than once he expressed wanting to partner with her instead since Peter had a hard time grasping Potions and Remus was often forced to do most of the work. She gave her friend a smile while she reached out to him with her mind. Remus's mind was always calm in comparison to hers, well at least on the outside. Within it she could tell that his wolf side was buried in there. _Morning Remus_ she thought to him. Remus smiled suddenly and looked up and over to her. _Morning Ella_ his voice echoed through her own mind. Arella had intended to mention what happened today in Divination but Mina suddenly wanted to talk about the Dance and how Adam had asked her to go with him.

Professor Slughorn then entered the classroom, although he did not start class right away as he had gone over to his desk first. He wasn't in a good mood today, during one his First year classes a student had exploded his cauldron because he couldn't seem to listen to instructions. So when James started laughing loudly at something Sirius had said the teacher decided he had no desire to deal with the two Marauders working together and possibly exploding another cauldron for kicks.

"Mr. Black would you please switch seats with Miss Danvers," Professor Slughorn said loudly, his voice clearly agitated. Both students scowled and Arella was tempted to 'suggest' to the Professor to have Black switch with someone else, however, she knew that was wrong. Plus she wasn't sure she could do it without possibly messing up something in his head. Sirius muttered a curse as he stood up, gathering his belongings and then moving over to his new table. Arella glared at him as the two passed each other. Silently Arella sat down beside the, once again, sulking James. Class then started with Professor Slughorn explaining what potion they would be working on today. As class went by Arella could practically feel Sirius staring at her, although she hoped it was more at James than her. The potion wasn't a hard one, thankfully. James was polite enough to go get their ingredients, although Arella suspected it was because Sirius had gone to get his and Mina's supplies too. She was never happier for class to end when Professor Slughorn began to make his way around to check each group's potion. After he had given, and deducted, points to students and the potions were bottled up the class was dismissed. Arella quickly put her things away with more gusto than she usually had, wanting to get away from the Marauders, particularly Sirius, as fast as possible.

Having been pondering what Arella had suggested earlier all through class James had thought up a brilliant idea. Instead of asking Lily he'd ask one of her friends. He was already aware that both Mina and Alice had dates of their own so his only option was Arella. Realizing just how quickly the brunette had left James stuffed his books into his bag and chased after her. While the girl had had a head start James was able to quickly catch up to her. "So Arella," he said upon reaching her. Arella slowed her pace down and glanced over at James while internally scowling, none of them would just leave her alone. "Since Lily's going with Diggory how bout you go with me to the Halloween Dance?" Instantly Arella stopped walking and stared at the boy while processing the words that had come out of his mouth. Nearby Lily, who had been walking with Mina, did the same.

"Please tell me you're joking," Arella replied dryly and without thinking.

"No, I'm quite serious," James smiled in what he hoped was charming. He was never really sure how to act around Arella. On one hand she was Remus's childhood mate but on the other she was Lily's closest friend.

"No Sirius is behind us with Remus and Peter," Arella immediately quipped back her eyes boring into James. In reply James rolled his eyes and said "Please Arella. Lily's going with Diggory and if I ask another girl she might take it in her head that I fancy her, when I've only got eyes for Lily. So my best option is going with someone who I know won't get the wrong idea." Arella mentally scowled again, the boy made sense even if it made her want to smack him. Before she could reply however, Lily immediately rounded onto James.

"You honestly believe that Arella would go to the Halloween dance with you Potter?" Lily asked, coming up to him and Arella. "I can tell you right now she won't." Arella turned her gaze to Lily, annoyed that the redhead was butting in so abruptly.

"Don't I get a say if I go with him or not?" Arella asked quietly. Lily looked over at her friend, "why would you want to go with him?"

"That's not exactly the point Lily," Arella snapped suddenly, clearly getting agitated with her friend.

"It's Potter Arella, kind of a no brainer," Lily replied snappishly, believing that it was well within her rights to answer for Arella.

"It's also my decision if I want to accept or not. You have no right in answering for me," Arella's voice getting louder with each word she spoke. Arella kept her voice tight as she began to feel her powers shifting, begging to be used. The tell tale headache began to form just behind her eyes.

"And if you were _my friend_ you'd say no!" Lily argued as she put her hands onto her hips. She emphasized the word friend as she spoke, she couldn't understand why Arella was fighting with her about this. It was Potter for Merlin's sake!

"And if you were _my friend_ you would allow me to make my own decisions!" Arella retaliated back, she could feel her control beginning to slip and she felt like her body temperature was rising.

"Oh so you're saying you like Potter then?" Lily said snidely, knowing that this was a cheap shot.

"No that's _not_ what I'm saying! I just don't want you answering for me!" Arella yelled, her control slipped through and instantly her eyes lit with flame as they bore into Lily. Not noticing what was going on with her friend Lily harped back "Really? Cause it kinda sounds like you do! I mean that's great Arella you can have him, just don't expect me to be around." Lily's words broke more of Arella's control.

"Will you get it through your thick skull Lily I was planning on saying _no_! I just want the ability to make my own bloody decisions!" the fire took over her eyes completely and her skin started to faintly glow, particularly at her clenched fists. Anger raged through Arella's blood and she narrowed her eyes at Lily. Staring back at Arella Lily knew she had gone too far. For years Lily had known that Arella was different, special even among wizards. At times Arella just knew what Lily had been thinking, even saying it before she did. When she was really upset objects would move across the room or float around her. It was worse when Arella had nightmares. Whatever she dreamed about was so violent that the beds in the room would shake or sometimes float up into the air. Between her, Alice and Mina the three girls had taken it upon themselves to help Arella, protect her even. But in this moment, staring directly into Arella's enflamed eyes Lily knew she had gone too far and for the first time she was afraid of what her friend could do. The moment Lily had thought of her fear she regretted it because Arella knew it too and the sorrow of it flashed into Arella's enflamed eyes. "Then make them," Lily said softly, ending the argument, before she turned and left without looking back. She knew that this was cruel of her but fleeing would help Arella calm down and that was more important. Arella watched her friend flee from her and it was then that she felt the eyes of other students on her. While they had been arguing other students had stopped to watch them. Silently Arella looked over at Alice and Mina, _Go with Lily_; she projected to them before turning her gaze to the other students. She spread out her mind, touching each of theirs with hers. She could feel the Maruaders's minds as well and pulled her own mind away from them. They were Remus's friends and she had promised never to use her powers on them. Once her mind was in each of the students she spoke. "Forget, forget that you saw this, saw me," the words echoed in their minds like a wave erasing the argument they had seen. No one would know about it, no one but her friends and the Marauders.

The Marauders watched as the students surrounding them dispersed from the area, each them continuing conversations they had been having before the fight. It was eerie to watch them act like nothing had happened.

"Ella," Remus said quietly as he approached the brunette, un-afraid of the display she had shown only moments before. Arella turned to Remus, her eyes still aflame and her skin still giving off a slight glow. "Ella, you have to do it," he said softly, glancing at his friends. "You have to make them forget."

"I thought you trusted them Remus," Arella replied. Her eyes bore into Remus, _they know your secret._

"Doesn't matter," Remus replied, _This is your secret, you get to decide who to trust._ Arella nodded as she focused her mind to the other three Marauders. They had watched silently at what had taken place between Lily and Arella, knowing it was best to not get involved. Arella started with Peter first, his mind was easy to mold as she needed it and it eagerly accepted the new memories she forged into it. James was slightly more resistant, his mind seemed to naturally protect any memory or thought of Lily but she soon wipe him clean of the incident. Both Peter and James stood zombie like as Arella turned her mind to Sirius. He stared back at her, anger in his eyes as he realized what Remus had asked her to do. "What the hell Remus," he growled as he glared at the werewolf. _It doesn't hurt, I promise_, Arella's voice filled Sirius's mind. It was warm and comforting, like it was suppose to be there with him. Arella focused onto Sirius's mind, searching for the opening she needed to get in. However, the moment her mind grazed against his she found herself unable to hear the thoughts going through Sirius. Instead she found silence and then a strange ringing in her own mind. Refocusing she tried again but to no avail. "I don't understand," she murmured as she looked to Remus. _I can't get into his mind, I was able to project my thoughts but I can't receive his._  
>"What?" Remus looked at Arella baffled before turning to Sirius.<p>

"What the bloody hell is going on Remus?!" Sirius demanded. Arella and Remus stared at Sirius unsure what to do. Internally, Arella scowled; she had been far too careless and now she was going to be forced to trust Sirius Black with her secrets. "I'll explain everything but right now I need you to pretend that nothing happened," Arella said calmly, her gaze penetrating into Sirius. "Please." Sirius looked over at Remus, unsure what to do.

"Sirius, please this is important," Remus begged. Sirius scowled now, Remus rarely begged and only when it concerned the safety of his friends. Arella was his childhood friend and he clearly wanted to protect her, even from his school friends. "Fine, but I have conditions," Sirius replied. "And we can discuss them when you explain what just happened." He returned Arella's gaze as he spoke, he may have been doing this for Remus but it would be Arella who adhere to his conditions. Their eyes met, fire to grey, and Arella understood this with utter certainty.

"Agreed," Arella did not break eye contact with the Gryffindor Heartthrob as she spoke. It was strange to Arella to find someone who was immune to her powers and she found herself both afraid and thrilled. "Tonight at six in the Room of Requirement," she challenged him to disagree with her, to argue the time or the place. Instead Sirius ignored the challenge and simply agreed. "Three…" Arella said softly, counting down to her release of James and Peter. The glow that had emitted off of Arella's skin faded. "Two." Sirius still refused to break Arella's gaze. The fire in her eyes dimmed until only clear blue shined at Sirius. "One." James and Peter blinked for a moment and then looked around slightly confused. Spotting Arella James blinked again before opening his mouth. "So what do you say Arella?" Arella still did not break eye contact with Sirius.

"I'm sorry James, but I'm afraid that won't be able to attend with you," she murmured, "I doubt it would go over well with Lily." James sighed, a little defeated. "Perhaps going without a date will be better." Arella added, her concern for James forcing her to break eye contact with Sirius. She smiled at James and the glasses wearing Marauder smiled back.

"Perhaps you're right Danvers," James agreed before looking over to Sirius. "What's with you mate?" Sirius had yet to cease his staring at Arella. Remus in turn glared at Sirius, silently hoping he wouldn't undo what Arella had done. "Nothing Prongs," Sirius finally looked at James, the suspicion was gone from his face and it was in fact quite friendly. He appeared as if nothing had happened, making Remus sigh with relief. The group then continued on their way back to their common room.

Arella did not find Lily or her other friends when she returned to her dorm room. In fact it was currently occupied by Darla and Roslyn. Both girls were clearly into whatever gossip they had been giggling about and hadn't noticed when Arella entered the dorm room. It was probably a good thing they hadn't, Arella only came up here to see if Lily was there and to check if she had any headache relief. Quietly Arella checked her nightstand for her headache relief. Unfortunately the nightstand drawer made a distinctly loud noise as she opened it and caught the attention of Darla and Roslyn.

"Having troubles Danvers?" Darla sneered as she stood up. Arella did not grace the girl with a glance as she checked the drawer. "No Darla I'm not, in fact I was just about to leave again," Arella replied as she shut the drawer. The two girls smirked to each other before standing up. They blocked Arella as she tried to head to the door, pushing her a little. Darla muttered "Freak" as they left the dorm room, leaving a scowling Arella. With an annoyed sigh Arella pinched the bridge of her nose before leaving the dorm room with the intent of heading to the Hospital Wing to get a headache relief.

Remus paced the empty hallway anxiously as he waited for both Arella and Sirius. He felt utterly torn after what had happened earlier between Arella and Lily. Sirius was his friend and he trusted him with his own dark secret but he had been protecting Arella's secrets for so long that it was hard to even contemplate sharing that burden, even with those he trusted most.

"Moony yer gonna put a hole in the floor with yer pacing," Sirius said as he approached his friend. Remus stopped his pacing and looked over at Sirius. "And you're on time," Remus replied quietly. Sirius nodded and strolled over to his friend, "So where's Danvers? I would've thought she'd be here before us." Remus had to admit he was a bit worried that Arella had yet to arrive. So while Sirius leaned casually against the wall with a cool ease Remus resumed his pacing. It was ten minutes later when Arella arrived, although she looked a little worse for wear. She had spent most of the rest of the day in the library after her visit to the Hospital Wing.

"Bollocks you're both here before me," she muttered as she headed to the entrance to the Room of Requirement. Both boys followed her into the magical room, Remus first then Sirius. The room had changed into a near carbon copy of the Gryffindor Common Room. Tired Arella plopped herself down into one of the chairs, tossing her bag onto the floor next to her as she did so. Remus took the chair next to hers while Sirius sat across from Arella. Silently Arella pinched the bridge of her nose for the umpteenth time today in an attempt to stave off her headache. It was a full minute before Arella opened her eyes and looked at Sirius. Once again clear blue met with pure grey.

"So, what would you like to know?" Arella asked softly, her voice piercing the stillness in the air. Once again Sirius felt like the rest of the world had simply disappeared and it was only him and Arella. "Everything, starting with what are you, no witch can do what you did today."

"No, an ordinary witch could not but I'm not an ordinary witch. I'm a Luciane or at least half Luciane on my father's side," Arella answered truthfully. "Remus, of course, knows as does Lily, Mina and Alice."

"What about Dumbledore?" Sirius questioned

"Yes, he knows too along with a couple other teachers," Arella replied. "And no I don't know why I'm not at a Luciane school."

"So, you're Luciane," Sirius said softly. "I thought that was probably it, I did a little research before I came up here."

"You mean to tell me you know how to do research?" Arella countered quietly.

"You have a sense of humor?" Sirius volleyed back at Arella, a smirk playing his lips. Clear blue eyes narrowed slightly but Arella did not reply.

"Sirius, you can't tell anyone," Remus joined in, not sure he liked the way his friend was looking at Arella. In fact he really didn't like the way either was looking at the other, in many ways it seemed very primal; each looking for dominance over the other but only finding an equal.

"What happened today was a small loss of control, it doesn't happen often," Arella explained. "You said you had conditions."

"Of course I do," Sirius replied. "I'm assuming that I'll be expected to help you keep your secret."

"Well it appears that I simply can't erase it from your mind so yes I'm afraid I'll need you to keep quiet about it," Arella scowled.

"Well my condition is that you accompany me to the Halloween Dance," Sirius smiled charmingly while Remus's jaw dropped and the scowl in Arella's face deepened. "Why?" she asked deadpanned.

"Well, you see I'm in a bit of a jam. This girl that fancies me keeps hinting that I should ask her, now if I ask then she's gonna get it in her head that I fancy her back and I don't. But if I ask another girl she might get the same idea and right now I just want to take a break for a little while," Sirius explained. "Now if I go with you, you can take care of yourself and you won't think I fancy you." Arella stood up and walked around her chair, thinking.

"You cannot be serious!" Remus yelled outraged at Sirius's request.

"Moony, you know I'm always Sirius," the heartthrob smirked, utterly in love with the play on words. Remus scowled as he stood up.

"One time," Arella said quickly, not wanting Remus to get into a fight with Sirius. "One time and you keep quiet about my secret until I'm ready to let the rest of you know."

"Now wait a minute I have no idea how long that'll be, how about every dance we have until you tell James and Peter," Sirius countered.

"No, once or I make it so you're the most undesirable student in the school," Arella argued. "Take it or leave it."

Sirius stared at Arella, grey meeting clear blue, he knew that fighting with her was futile and she could do what she promised to do. Either way he got what he wanted and it wouldn't do to push his luck further. "Deal then," he held out his hand for Arella to shake, sealing the deal. Confidently Arella took his hand and held it for a moment. It felt like the world had faded away, as if it was only him and Arella. Her hand was warm and fit perfectly in his but despite the warm fuzzy feeling Sirius kept his gaze on Arella's eyes.

"Deal then," her voice broke the moment and she released his hand forcing the rest of the world to come rushing back. Remus stood beside Arella scowling at Sirius, it was clear he didn't like this agreement at all. "Cheer up Moony, I promise to be good with her," Sirius said cheekily, a grin appearing on his face. It just made Remus scowl further.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: Sorry for long time between updates, I swear it isn't intentional. I should have the next chapter up soon! Thanks for Reading!

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and all characters belonging to Harry Potter, those respectfully belong to JK Rowling. I'm just borrowing them for a bit of fun. Arella Danvers, Professor di Orcus, Mina Carter, Darla Rowe and Roslyn Trengrove do belong to me.

Chapter Four:

Remus said nothing as Arella left the Room of Requirement before Sirius and him. He was utterly silent as he walked with Sirius back to the Common Room. He was even silent when James questioned the pair about where they had been. It wasn't until they were up in their dorm room that he finally spoke. Anger radiated off of him as he grabbed Sirius by the shirt and slammed him into the wall, startling both James and Peter.

"Sirius if you hurt her in any way or comprise her virtue you will regret it," his voice was low and steady as he stared into Sirius's eyes. "And remember my wolf can get angry very, very easily and has no problem expressing it." Sirius's own eyes widened in shock, Remus rarely spoke of his other side but in this moment he could see the wolf within his friend and his survival instincts told him to not anger the werewolf in front of him.

"Remus, Mate I swear I won't do anything to hurt Danvers," Sirius replied quietly. Remus stared at Sirius a moment longer before releasing his friend. He looked down, "I know Sirius, I know I just…she's…I've just always been protective of Ella," Remus said softly his mind thinking back to the first time he had really known Arella was different.

_She sat alone on the swing staring off into space. She looked as if she saw something that no one else saw and whatever it was it saddened her because tears slowly ran down her cheeks. _

"_Arella," a nine year old Remus called out to his nine year old friend. "What's wrong Arella."_

_She looked up at Remus and for the first time he saw the fire in her eyes. They were a blaze with a vibrant flame aura that was so beautiful and so frightening. It was as though Remus was seeing her for the first time. Her skin faintly glowed and her hair moved a little as if blowing in the wind, although there was none. But it was her eyes that held Remus still; he could see deep into her soul through those eyes and for the first time he realized that he and Arella were not so different. In place of the wolf that resided inside himself he saw a fiery and angry phoenix. _

"_Arella…" Remus breathed. _

"_Remus…" she whispered, although it sounded like a plea. She was begging him not to leave her, to stay as her friend. _

"_What's happen to you?" he asked in a voice she barely heard. _

"_I don't know…I had a nightmare last night and when I woke up my eyes were like this," Arella replied as more tears rolled down her cheeks. "Remus…I'm scared I don't understand what's happening to me."_

_She buried her face into her hands and began to sob, her fear radiating from her. Remus rushed over to her and pulled her into a hug. The nine year old girl buried her face into his stomach and just cried. _

"_I promise Arella everything will be okay, I'll protect you," Remus whispered as he too began to silently cry for his friend. "I'll never leave you Arella." _

At the time neither had known what Arella was and Arella's parents pretended that they hadn't noticed her oddities. It wasn't until the summer after their first year at Hogwarts that Professor di Orcus came and explained what Arella was. Afterwards Arella would spend two weeks of her summer with the Divination teacher learning to control her abilities.

"What in Merlin's name is going on?" James demanded as he looked back and forth between his friends in confusion. Sirius was the first to speak after what felt like a long moment. "I asked Danvers to the dance Prongs," he answered, dropping his gaze to the floor for a moment before looking up at James. James returned the look confused. "Look I know it's unusual but I wanted to go with someone who wouldn't get all attached to me. Danvers fit the bill and I solemnly swear that nothing will happen to her," Sirius looked at just for a moment and then back at Remus, silently begging the werewolf to believe him. Remus stared back at Sirius for a moment before nodding, silently telling Sirius that for now he believed him.

Meanwhile, Arella way lying on her bed waiting for her friends to return to their dorm room so she find out if Lily was okay. Thankfully Darla and Roslyn were both gone and had yet to return as well. She wasn't sure if the deal she had made would end well or not, Sirius Black wasn't exactly a friend and certainly wasn't well liked by Arella's own friends. Still, he was Remus's friend and Arella knew the heartthrob knew about her friend's own secret. Then there was there was the fact that Sirius practically had his own following and a slew of fan girls who would have no problem ripping Arella apart simply because she went to the dance with him.

The door to the dormitory opened, jogging Arella from her thoughts as she sat up to see who was entering. Thankfully it was Lily, Alice and Mina, just the three girls Arella wanted to see. Lily looked at Arella as she entered but said nothing at first. It was Arella who broke the silence. "I'm sorry about earlier," she said softly, standing up from her bed.

"No, it's me who's sorry. You were right; it's your choice and your life and I shouldn't have butted in," Lily shook her head. "Are you okay?" Concern filled Lily's eyes; she knew how hard it could be for Arella to control her powers sometimes.

"Mostly, there is a problem though," Arella looked down at the floor, pursing her lips.

"What problem?" all three of Arella's friends asked at the same time. Arella continued to avoid eye contact as she answered. "Well…I've been blackmailed into going to the Dance with Black." Lily, Mina, and Alice all looked at each other for a moment before Alice chimed in. "How in Merlin's name were you blackmailed into being Black's date?"

"Well…after you left I had to do damage control, so I wiped the minds of all the students who decided to watch and then Remus practically ordered me to wipe to the minds of his friends but when I went to wipe Black's mind I couldn't get in. He apparently is more mentally complicated than he appears," Arella explained.

"Were you able to wipe the other two?" Mina asked, referring to James and Peter.

"Oh yea, Peter is like putty and James is only resistant when I'm wiping memories of Lily, otherwise I could make him believe he was my flying monkey," Arella retorted as she moved to sit down. "Black, however, I couldn't even hear his thoughts so Remus and I convinced him to keep quiet until we could talk to him in private. So we met up at the Room of Requirement and explained what had happened and then he blackmailed me into being his date."

"I'm not sure which is worse, Black or Potter," Lily muttered as she sat down on her own bed. "Black," Mina and Alice uttered together. "You two are such a basket full of kittens aren't you," Arella muttered as she sulked.

"Well I guess you'll have to make the most of it, it is only one date," Lily said confidently. "What's the worst that could happen?"

In the days leading up to the Dance Arella hated Lily for her words. Every day Sirius Black would pester her about what they would wear to the dance or he'd ask her if she knew how to dance, which she didn't, and he ate with her at least once a day. It was like he was a nagging girl. After a week of this had passed Arella finally blew up at him.

"Why. Are. You. Here?" Arella growled as Sirius sat down across from her at dinner. None of Arella's friends seemed to mind him sitting with them once they realized that he could care less about them. Now they found his presence quite funny when he was annoying Arella.

"Well…I need to know your favorite flower," he said with a shrug, like this was a normal thing.

"Why do you need to know this?" Arella scowled as she narrowed her eyes.

"That's for me to know," Sirius grinned. "Trust me you'll enjoy it." His eyes twinkled mischievously as he said this, a clear innuendo in his words. "Don't make me smack you," Arella growled again. Sirius just smiled as he filled up his plate and began to eat his dinner, clearly ignoring Arella's temperament. "So about your favorite flower," Sirius said between bites. Arella growled again before storming away from the Great Hall. Sirius watched for a moment, confused, before he stood and went after her. Lily, Mina, and Alice watched him as he went before Mina shook her head. "10 gallons those end up getting married."

"I'm not taking that bet, you crazy?" Alice looked at Mina like she had grown two heads. "That's asking me to lose."

"I'm with Alice; I'm not making that bet. I might as well just give you the money," Lily joked before all three girls fell into laughter.

Meanwhile, Arella was quite aware that Sirius had followed her and quite annoyed by it. Sirius wasn't stupid, he knew he was annoying her; a part of him was enjoying annoying her. The girl looked quite adorable when she scowled.

"Arella," Sirius called out using her first name, something he rarely did. It was enough to make Arella stop and turn back to look at Sirius. "What do you want Black? Because I've been racking my brain trying to figure that out and I'm still coming up empty," Arella rounded on him. Sirius stopped directly in front of her and stared down at her clear blue eyes. Clear blue and pure grey meeting, this time the blue ready to fight but not the grey. "I'm just trying to make sure that you have a good time at the Dance, that's its special for you," Sirius softly replied, his voice quiet and his eyes apologetic. The fight in clear blue faded and Arella sighed in defeat.

"I take it Remus put you up to this didn't he," Arella pursed her lips.

"He likes to think he did but he really didn't, this was my choice," Sirius replied. "Look I might have blackmailed you into going with me but I don't intend to make you miserable." Arella stared at him as she absorbed what he had said, unsure how to respond to his admission. Truthfully she wasn't sure he was being honest or not and right now she would simply have to take a leap of faith.

"Purple alstroemeria," Arella muttered as she looked down and away from Sirius.

"Pardon?" Sirius questioned confused by the words. Arella rolled her eyes and replied "My favorite flower is purple alstroemeria." She then turned and left Sirius to go back to the Great Hall and finish her dinner. Sirius watched her go, a small but goofy grin on his face.

"And I thought I was desperate," James's voice came from Sirius's right. Sirius jerked and looked over at James, who had apparently been watching the exchange between Arella and Sirius.

"What do you mean Prongs?" Sirius questioned. James shook his head and motioned for Sirius to follow him, it wouldn't do to have this conversation in public. "You know exactly what I mean Padfoot," James answered. "You fancy Danvers, you always have and if it hadn't been for the fact that she's Remus's childhood mate you would've already been dating her."

"That was a long time ago James," Sirius scowled before he stormed away from his friend. James watched Sirius storm away knowing he was right. It had been around the same time James first realized he wanted to go out with Lily Evans that Sirius had first made his interest in Arella known to him. However, it was possible that it had been there from the moment he had laid eyes onto her. When they had met Arella they had been first years struggling to get Sirius's trunk onto the train. After helping the young brunette Sirius had continued to watch her, at least until he had bruised his elbow because he wasn't paying attention. James was sure that if Arella hadn't been Remus's childhood friend Sirius would have already been dating her. Instead he chose to go out with girls who were nothing like Arella, probably to move beyond her. James shook his head, clearing his thoughts about the past; perhaps this was a good thing though. If things between Arella and Sirius went well perhaps Lily would see that he, James Potter, was a decent bloke after all.

The days continued by while anticipation for the dance among the fifth, sixth and seventh years built up. It was all the girls talked about day and night; and it annoyed Arella beyond belief. At first she had been a little excited, she had a date and that made things much more fun but it was all they talked about, all they thought about and there was no escape. It probably didn't help that she had also realized that Remus would be unable to even go to the Dance. The night of the dance was the night after the full moon, a night that Remus would still be suffering from his transformation.

"It's completely and utterly unfair!" Arella muttered angrily from her seat beside Remus as the Marauders went over their plans for costumes together. Arella had been brought in because of her status as Sirius's date. She was good about keeping her voice down but it was probably a good thing there were few students in the Common Room. "Every time something fun comes along that stupid ball ruins it all! I have half a mind to blow it up!"

"It's okay Ella," Remus tried to placate her. "I mean I'm sure you'll have just as much fun without me and I'm sure Sirius will be a good date."

"That is so not the point Remus," Arella shook her head before glaring at Remus. "This means you'll be stuck in the Hospital Wing while all of us are at the dance, it isn't fair!"

"So…you're still okay with going with me then?" Sirius questioned uncertainly. Arella glared at him in response, a glare that clearly read 'don't be stupid.'

"I also hate to point this out Danvers but you can't exactly blow up the Moon," James added quietly. "It's a little far away."

"Yes I can," was Arella's indignant reply. "And once I blow the stupid thing up Remus could have more fun. He'll be able to do things without worrying about his…what was it you called it James? His furry little problem?"

"Arella…" Remus tried again. "James is right you can't just blow up the Moon."

"Besides we don't know if that would help him or not," Peter suddenly added as he looked up at Arella. His comment was only met with a glare that made the boy hide behind one of his text books.

"Well it should," Arella muttered as she crossed her arms in a half pout.

"I'm sorry Ella," Remus said quietly, knowing that his friend wanted him to go to the Dance. "Don't be Remy, it's not your fault," Arella muttered. "So about these costumes, what are we going as?" The question was for Sirius and Arella looked at him pointedly.

"Well…there's always the idea of a group costume like say the three musketeers," Sirius suggested.

"That wouldn't work Black there's four of us and I'm not dressing as a boy," Arella shook her head. "Look I already have most of my own costume, I kinda had it put together before you asked me."

"Oh," Sirius was a little shocked; he hadn't known the girl had already taken the time to find herself a costume; especially since she seemed so disinterested in the whole event. "Yea, the theme is a Ventian Masquerade; I have the mask and most of the accessories I just need a color theme for the gown," Arella explained. "Plus I guess it would also have to match what you're wearing or I could start over with something else."

"Well that isn't a bad idea," Sirius muttered quietly. At his tone Arella bit her lip; this was one of the reasons she hated having a date, she now had to conform to their wants and they were usually different from her own. "That might actually work out well, I could wear my dress robes and a mask with colors that matched your dress and it wouldn't take a lot of work," Sirius mused aloud; truthfully Sirius hated picking out costumes and this one would be quite easy; which made it all the better in Sirius's mind.

"Really?" Arella questioned while tactfully avoiding the use of Sirius's name. The dark haired boy nodded; adding "Yea, I'll give you my dress robes if you want to change anything to them. These wankers can figure out their own costumes." He gestured to James and Peter causing the former to glare at their friend. Arella's face lit up and she smiled brightly, "Okay I guess I'll go work on my own costume." She stood up, gave Remus a quick hug and then, after a moment's hesitation, gave Sirius a quick kiss on his cheek before she went off to her own dorm room. In shock Sirius stared after her, a faint blush creeping up in his cheeks. Remus, however, glared at Sirius unhappy at Arella's small display of affection.

Once in her dormitory and after double checking she was alone, Arella pulled out the gown she had been secretly working on. The dress was still a work in progress, some of the bead work needed to be finished and Arella still planned to change the color of the gown. Growing up Arella's mother had taught her to make her own clothes and more importantly how to mend them; it had been one of the things Arella loved doing with her mother. Since learning to use magic the process became much quicker and Arella found that she enjoyed combining both magical and Muggle ways to create something. With her wand in hand Arella began to imagine the colors she wanted for her gown. Muttering as she moved her wand Arella worked steadily on her costume.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Harry Potter characters other than the ones I've added in. Those belong to me.

A/N: Thanks for reading! Reviews are much welcomed just please be polite in them. - Alice Blackwood

Chapter Five:

Arella hummed a little as she walked to the Great Hall for breakfast; she had to admit for once she was excited for the Dance. Last night she had finished her costume as well as Sirius's costume, which she still needed to give him. Both were currently hidden away from prying eyes and possible jealous dorm mates. As Arella got closer to the Great Hall she heard a crash before hearing a distinct shout of "POTTER!" With a small sigh Arella could guess who was at the heart of this disturbance, Lily and James. Rounding the corner Arella found Lily and James facing one another with angry looks on their faces. Sirius, Peter and Remus all stood behind James while Amos, Mina and a friend of Amos's stood behind Lily. Amos had what looked to be yellow paint all over him and an angry look on his face. His friend looked just as angry as he helped Amos out of his robe before it got all over his uniform. Sirius, Remus and Peter watched the two warily in case they decided to attack James.

"What in Merlin's name is _wrong_ with you?!" Lily shouted; her body was rigid from trying to control her anger.

"It wasn't me!" James shouted back as he gestured towards Amos and the yellow paint that covered him. His own face began to turn a light shade of red.

"Oh please Potter, it's _always_ you! Why can't you just leave me and anyone else I like alone?!" Lily's face also turned red, both from yelling and probably embarrassment. This hadn't been the first time that Lily was with someone and James got jealous; his jealously almost always ended in the guy Lily liked being pranked by the Marauders. With a sigh Arella opened her mind to get an insight into James's. He had promised Arella that he would leave Amos be until after the Dance. His thoughts were wild and each glittered with confusion and anger. But with a quick and light riffle through his memories Arella saw that for once James was innocent. Lily, on the other hand, had never looked so angry before. Her face had turned a light shade of red and her eyes narrowed dangerously as she glared at James.

"Just stay away from me Potter!" Lily shouted before finally turning back to Amos. "Amos I am so sorry!" She fretted at the sight of the yellow paint.

"Its fine Lily," he muttered but his eyes remained glaring at the four Marauders. His eyes were murderous while his hand gripped his wand tightly. Carefully Arella skimmed Amos's mind and found that he desperately wanted to duel with James, he only held back because he wanted to impress Lily. He allowed Lily to lead him away from the Marauders, his friend following unhappily, his thoughts mirroring Amos's. It was then Arella approached, she had no intention of interfering with what had just happened.

"That stupid git!" James swore tension and anger radiated off of him.

"Well I see you four are causing trouble once again," Arella approached the group with an un-amused look adorning her face.

"I DIDN'T DO THAT!" James roared suddenly, startling Arella and causing her to jump a little. She had never once seen the usually cheerful James Potter so angry before and in many ways it frightened her a little. It also showed just how much he cared about Lily to allow her to change his usual demeanor so drastically. It was clear that Lily's opinion mattered to him.

"That wasn't one of our pranks Ella," Remus added quietly, however, his gaze never once left James. Both Sirius and Remus watched their friend worriedly. They all stayed silent as James continued his rant. "I've tried all year to show her that I'm not a bad bloke that I'm worth her attention! I even promised not to do any pranks against Amos!" The glasses wearing Marauder began to pace, his school robes billowing around him. "Why? Why can't she see that I'm not a bad bloke?"

Arella couldn't help but feel sorry for James, he had really been trying to be a good person and resist pranking Amos. However, it also hadn't stopped him from pranking other unsuspecting victims who included Lily's best friend Severus Snape. James suddenly shook his head and stormed off away from the Great Hall to only he knew where. Sirius, Remus and Peter all looked at each unsure if they should follow him. Arella on the other hand simply watched him go; she could tell he needed to get away.

"Let him go," Arella voice was quiet as she turned back to the remaining three Marauders. "He needs to think." They nodded; Remus and Peter both turned to head into the Great Hall. Sirius started to go with them but Arella grabbed his arm, making him turn towards her.

"I have your costume," she said. "It'd probably be best to give it to you now verses waiting until tomorrow."

"Yea, sure," Sirius nodded and allowed Arella to drag him back to the Gryffindor Common Room. "I have something to give you anyway."

"What could you possibly have to give me?" Arella asked glancing over at Sirius with a bit of suspicion.

"It's nothing bad I promise Danvers," Sirius smirked. It didn't take long for the pair to make it back to the Gryffindor Common Room. Arella fled up to the Girls' Dorm while Sirius went up to his dorm room. The 5th year boys' dorm room had six four poster beds with the four Marauder's beds all aligned together on the far side of the dorm room. Sirius and James each had posters hung near their own beds of their favorite Quidditch teams while Remus and Peter each had Hogwarts banners around their beds. Peter also had a picture of his parents on his nightstand and Remus had a picture him and Arella, which was usually placed faced down when the boys decided to plan out pranks. Upon entering the dorm room Sirius immediately went to his trunk which sat at the foot of his bed. He knelt down as he opened the trunk and began to sift through its contents, muttering "Where is it?" as he did so.

"Where the bloody hell did I put it?" he was muttering as Arella entered the dorm room with a garment bag in hand. She eyed the Gryffindor Heartthrob curiously as he looked for whatever he was looking for in his trunk.

"So…whatcha looking for?" Arella asked loudly startling Sirius, who jumped and banged his head on the lid of his trunk, Arella was unable to hold in her laughter as she doubled over giggling horrendously. She was forced to set the garment bag she held onto one of the poster beds before she dropped it onto the floor. Sirius scowled and rubbed his head annoyed at himself. He glanced back down at the interior of the trunk and wanted to smack himself as he saw the box he had been looking for.

"That hurt you know," Sirius stood up and went over to Arella. She straightened out and once again picked up the garment bag.

"What's this for?" she questioned eyeing the box suspiciously. Sirius rolled his eyes at the tone Arella used; he could hear the suspicion in her voice. 'Liked I'd prank her,' he thought idly. "Look I realize that black mailing you into being my date was wrong and I am sorry," Sirius explained. "So…I wanted to let you know that I will keep your secret."

Arella smiled, touched by Sirius's words. "Sirius, I know you won't tell anyone. If you were that kind of person Remus would have been out of Hogwarts years ago." Her blue eyes locked with Sirius's grey ones as she spoke.

"I know, but the Dance should be something special for you. Remus told me that this would kinda be your first date so it should be special," Sirius explained as he held out the box he had in his hands. She eyed him for a moment and then the box for a moment, more to make him nervous than anything else, before she held out the garment bag with one hand and grabbed the box with the other. Sirius happily took the garment bag once Arella held the box and went over to his bed; hanging it up and out of the way. Arella went and sat down onto Remus's bed, it was closest to her, and observed the box. It was quite plain, a simple wooden box, except for her name was burned into the lid of the box in neat script writing. There was a metal clasp on the front of the box, locking the lid into place that Arella undid. Once open Arella found a hair clip that had four white alstroemeria blooms with three vibrant green leaves surrounding them. Confused Arella looked up at Sirius, unsure why he had given her such a gift.

"I don't understand, Sirius, this is beautiful but I don't know what I did to deserve such a gift," she confessed. A part of her wanted to refuse the gift but another, stronger part, didn't want to. "It's supposed to be part of some Muggle custom, the bloke gives his date a flower thing. Well I wanted to do something like that, since you were raised like a Muggle, but I figured flowers would eventually wilt and die," he explained. Gesturing to the hair clip he added. "I thought this would be a better gift and it would go with your costume. Plus I enchanted the flowers so they'll change color to match whatever you're wearing."

"You really didn't have to do this," Arella murmured as she looked down at the clip and gently fingered the petals. "I know," Sirius came over and sat down next to her. "I wanted to, to make up for black mailing you." Arella smiled and looked over at the Marauder next to her. "You really are a good friend Sirius," she said softly. She then undid her wild brunette locks and redid the bun she wore so she could place the clip into her hair. It might have been a tad fancy for everyday wear but for the moment Arella didn't care. Sirius was happy to see the four blooms shift color from shining white into a vibrant red that matched Gryffindor's colors. Arella then stood up, placing the box inside of her school bag before turning back to Sirius.

"Come on, we better go before we miss breakfast all together," she smiled before heading out of the boys' dormitory. Sirius immediately followed her, suddenly realizing that he was getting pretty hungry.

The school day passed by quickly, Arella's friends each questioned her about the hair clip and eventually acknowledged that Sirius could be a decent person when he wanted.

"I bet he wants in your pants Ella," Mina announced as they all walked towards the Great Hall for lunch.

"Mina!" Lily gasped as she looked over at the blonde haired girl. "You don't need to announce that and I'm sure Arella knows that already!" Arella couldn't help the sudden bit of depression that ran through her; she hadn't really thought of that when Sirius had given her the clip. She had honestly thought it had been an honest, no strings attached gift; now she wasn't so sure anymore.

"He can want all he wants but _that_ won't ever happen," Arella muttered to her friends as she tried to squash the sad feeling she had.

"Go Ella! You tell him, you can do way better than Black anyways," Mina cheered, beside her Alice stared at her friend confused. True, she knew Lily was still pissed at the Marauders from this morning but they had all agreed that Black definitely like Arella and was certainly being different about it. Hell they had each decided to not bet against the pair getting together because they all felt it would happen, so what was Mina up to?

As the group sat down at Gryffindor table together Arella calmly removed the hair clip from her hair, no longer comfortable wearing.

"Why are you taking it out?" Alice asked as she watched her friend. Arella shook her hair down, the now wavy locks tumbling onto her shoulders. "My head hurts and putting my hair down helps," Arella lied easily; she didn't want them to know Mina's words had hurt. Arella wanted to see the good in Sirius, she wasn't sure why she wanted that but a part of her was certain that he was a good person and was a good friend. She pulled out the box the clip had been in this morning and placed it back inside; she would wear to the Dance but not after. Once it was safe inside the box she put it back into her bag and began to fill up her plate for lunch. Alice watched Arella for a moment, knowing she had been lying, before giving Mina a quick glare. It had been obvious to Alice that Arella really liked the clip, that Sirius had said or done something that made the clip special and now that feeling was ruined. It really wasn't fair.

When Sirius entered the Great Hall with James his eyes immediately looked for Arella and he smiled a little when he spotted her. That smile quickly turned into a frown when he saw she no longer wore the clip he had given her. Instead her brown hair flowed freely around her shoulders and somewhat covered her face as she kept her head bent down.

"Hey do you mind if we sit away from the girls today," James said quietly as he had spotted Lily sitting with Arella, Mina and Alice. His heart just wasn't into being near Lily today. Sirius turned to his friend a little shocked but in a way he understood; this morning had been bad and Lily's words had actually hurt James.

"Not a problem Mate," Sirius smiled and the two of them went and sat farther down Gryffindor table and away from the four fifth year girls. As the boys passed the girls; Lily tensed a bit in anticipation of some antic from Potter but was pleasantly surprised when he did nothing and just kept going. In fact he didn't even acknowledge Lily, although Sirius did smile at Arella. She smiled back but it didn't reach her eyes and it almost seemed like a sad smile. She did, however, notice James's behavior and remembered how he hadn't done that prank this morning. She watched from the corner of her eyes as James and Sirius sat down away from them. She also noticed Lily breathe a sigh of relief as they did so.

"I think he's finally getting the hint," Lily said loudly as she smiled at her friends.

"Actually you should apologize to him, he didn't do that prank this morning," Arella's voice was intentionally low to keep their conversation between the four of them.

"Excuse me?" Lily was shocked; there was no way he couldn't have done that prank. "It's Potter Arella, he always does the prank. It's always him."

"I'm a telepath Lily, I heard his thoughts and shifted through them, he didn't do the prank," Arella explained. "I'm not sure who did but I know without a doubt that James Potter is innocent. I'm not saying he hasn't pranked anyone else but he certainly didn't prank Amos. So you should apologize to him." Lily's mouth dropped and would have hit the floor if her jaw had been long enough. She knew Arella didn't joke when it came to her abilities and for her to openly admit to using them intentionally was rare. But the thought of apologizing to Potter was something Lily couldn't fathom. It was James Potter, a guy who thought hexing first years was fun.

"He hasn't hexed the first years all year," Arella commented, her eyes staring straight into Lily. It was a clear indication that she had heard Lily's thoughts.

"I need to think, Ella, he's done so much in the past and I'm not sure I can forgive him," Lily replied quietly before focusing on her lunch. The rest of their time in the Great Hall was quiet; Alice and Mina talked together quietly while both Arella and Lily ate silently. Meanwhile James and Sirius were both joined by Peter and Remus. The two newcomers noticed the subdue nature of their female year mates and looked at Sirius and James curiously.

"Can't help you with that Mate, we're as clueless as you," Sirius answered the unspoken question. Remus glanced over to Arella curiously. '_Arella? You okay?'_ He thought loudly, knowing Arella would receive them in her own mind. '_I'm fine Remus.'_ Her reply was quite abrupt and very short but it certainly made Remus think twice about pressuring her to know what was wrong. Once lunch was over Gryffindors had double Herbology with Hufflepuff. Normally Arella worked with Alice during Herbology but today for some reason Alice disappeared for a moment before popping up next to Sirius as his partner, leaving Arella with James.

"I asked Alice to switch with me today," James explained as he moved to stand next to Arella at their table. "I wanted to thank you for what you said to Lily earlier, it means a lot." He looked at Arella, his eyes sincere. He had heard what Arella had said to Lily at lunch after Lily's loud comment about him 'taking a hint'.

"I only told her the truth James," Arella said softly, wondering how much James had heard. It would be bad if he had heard the telepath part of that conversation. "Yea, I didn't quite understand the whole telepath thing and Sirius looked like he was gonna shit himself when he heard it too," James added conversationally. His gaze remained on the plant they were currently studying. Arella, on the other hand, froze and simply stared ahead of herself. Silently she mentally kicked herself for not paying attention to how loud her voice had been. James side glanced over at Arella, noticing the almost concealed panicked look on Arella's face. He half smirk for just a moment before he finally looked over to her. "Arella," he said softly, Arella however, kept her gaze straight ahead. '_Arella,'_ He tried again, projecting his thoughts loudly startling Arella and making her look over at James. _'Arella I already know that you're a Luciane,'_ his mind was softer now that he knew he had Arella's attention.

"How," the word was but a whisper on her lips and James barely heard it. He looked back at their plant for a moment before jerking his head to the right. James hoped Arella would understand that he wanted her to do.

'_I figured it the summer between second and third year. I talked about you to my parents over Christmas break during second year and they asked that I bring a picture of you home with me. So I copied a picture Remus had and took it with me over the summer holidays,'_ James explained. _'My mother recognized some facial features you have with an Alexander d'Athane. He was an old friend of theirs who died in 1960, killed actually. They explained what Luciane were and then ordered me to never tell anyone what you were. Mum was very adamant about it too, now that I think about it.'_

'_They knew my biological parents?'_ Arella questioned, shocked to discover someone who had known them. Professor di Orcus always refused to tell Arella anything about her biological parents.

'_Well they knew your dad. When I asked about your mum they got pretty tight lipped about it and didn't really answer my questions,'_ James answered with a shrug. _'Anyway I want you to know that I'm okay with what you are. I mean I keep Remus's secrets and I know you know about that.'_

'_Thank you James Potter, for everything,' _Arella poured her gratitude into her thoughts so she knew for sure that James felt it. _'Perhaps over the summer I could visit, I'd like to ask your parents about my father. Maybe they can answer some of the things Professor di Orcus will not.'_

'_Sure, Sirius usually stays with us during the summer too and I know my parents have been wanting to meet you,'_ James smiled at Arella. '_I can promise you'll have a great time. We can have Pete and Remus there too.'_

'_I'd like that James,'_ Arella smiled back for a moment before she nodded towards the plant they were supposed to be caring for. The rest of class went rather well, James made several successful attempts at making Arella laugh; including an imitation of a Mandrake wailing. Arella chose to walk with James, Sirius, Remus and Peter back to the Common Room instead of Lily, Mina, and Alice.

"So Danvers did you want to meet up tomorrow night in the Common Room or near the Great Hall?" Sirius asked as they walked through the corridors. Arella looked over at Sirius, doubt of his intentions still echoing in her thoughts.

"Near the Great Hall is fine," she replied her voice was quieter than normal and the usual cheer completely gone. The tone drew Remus's attention to her and he had a feeling it had to do with whatever had happened before he went down to lunch. Sirius was a bit confused by Arella's tone and once again he wondered what had changed from this morning.

"Are you sure?" he questioned. She turned to look at him and simply nodded. "Yea, I'm sure. You lot go on up to the Common Room, I have to go to the library for a bit. I have that essay for Divination still, which I will remind you two is due next week." She pointed to both Sirius and James for a moment before leaving for the library. The Marauders watched her leave, all of them confused by her melancholy.

A half hour later James found Arella still in the library, her Divination book sitting in front of her open along with two other books. Her head was bent as she wrote on parchment, occasionally glancing at one of the books. Silently James walked up to the table Arella worked at and sat down, casually taking out his own book and some parchment. The moment he sat down Arella's eyes glanced up at him. Her eyebrows scrunched together in confusion. "What are you doing?" she asked quietly. James looked over at her and shrugged.

"Finishing my Divination essay, I won't have time finish it over the weekend what with the Dance and then Quidditch the next day. I'll be exhausted come Sunday; just best I get it done now," James explained. "Remus is working on some other homework and Pete was busy with some Hufflepuff girl. I asked Sirius if he wanted to come but he was a bit busy so it's just me apparently." Arella stared at James for a long moment, a moment that made James shift uncomfortably.

"Have you ever been in the library before?" she finally asked, once she was sure James was thoroughly uncomfortable.

"Of course I have, just don't come here often," James glared at the girl for a moment before realizing she had been joking. He then smirked and continued to get his supplies in order. Arella couldn't help smiling as well as she continued to work on her essay. They sat together for some time with neither of them saying a word to each other. Arella finished up her conclusion and looked up from her work. She noticed that James was surprisingly focused on his work. Sitting straighter Arella looked over her Divnation book to see just how far James had gotten on his essay. However, instead of lines of words James was drawing a poorly drawn picture of him and Lily.

"I'm sure Professor di Orcus will find you doodles quite enlightening," Arella said dryly; sarcasm dripping from her voice. A quick dry read of James's mind told her that he'd already finished his essay. "Why are you really here James Potter?" James's face turned a light shade of red as he looked up at Arella. He smiled sheepishly and shrugged.

"I thought you might want to talk," he replied, putting his quill down and giving Arella his full attention.

"I'm fine," Arella snapped suddenly angry at James for snooping.

"Yea and I'm a goblin," James muttered rolling his eyes at the same time. Arella rolled her eyes, "You're too pretty to be a goblin."

"Why thank you Danvers. But that doesn't change that you could use a friend," he smirked happily. Arella closed her eyes and leaned back in her chair, the turmoil she felt earlier returning. _'I'm confused James; I don't understand why Sirius was so adamant about going to the Dance with me especially since he gave me this beautiful hair clip that matches my costume perfectly.' _

"Arella I can't tell you why Sirius asked you to the Dance," James began. _'He didn't ask James, he blackmailed me into after he found out about my abilities and being Luciane,'_ Arella interrupted quickly. James paused, this was news to him.

"Well that explains a lot," James muttered recalling how Remus had pinned Sirius to the wall of their dormroom. "Remus…"

'_I can see it in your mind, did Remus really do that?'_

"Yea, it was right scary too. Remus isn't usually that aggressive," James replied. "But like I said that explains a lot. Sirius promised Remus that he'd treat you well."

"So Sirius being nice to me is all a command from Remus and his furry little problem," Arella clarified aloud, the statement not really making her feel better. It actually made her feel worse.

"Honestly Arella I don't know why he asked you, well blackmailed you, but I can tell you that this is different for him and not because Remus threatened him," James explained. "I've seen Sirius with loads of girls but you're the only girl he's made a real effort with. That hairclip, he made that himself. Any other gift he gives he gets from Hogsmeade and they're never personal like that." Arella was quiet as she stared at James, uncertain how to take what he had told her. She looked down at her lap while she absorbed this information.

"You're different Arella, don't doubt that okay," James added, his voice commanding Arella to look him in the eyes. Like before their eyes connected and James felt the distinct feeling that she was seeing everything about him. She held his eyes for a moment, feeling his sincerity in them before she finally blinked and released him. She was still confused but something about what James said made her feel a little lighter. Mina's words had hurt and definitely gave her reasons to doubt Sirius's intentions, however, for now she would give Sirius the benefit of a doubt and believe he means well. James believed in him and Remus had obviously made it clear to Sirius that he was to be a perfect gentleman. It felt nice to have people who cared about her.

"Thank you James, you really are a good friend," she smiled, pouring her gratitude into James's mind. James smiled back as well.


	6. Chapter 6

***A/N**** Hello! Hi!...yea. Well for those of you who have read this story just to let you know I haven't let this go to the wayside, I promise. Life has been rather hectic this last year and between work and school and family problems I just haven't had time to write. Not a great excuse I know but I've been really wanting to get to work on this so I'm more committed to continuing this story. I have tons of ideas...including future stories with these characters that will possibly span the entirety of the Harry Potter series and maybe even beyond, not sure on that yet, but there are plans.

Anyway...All disclaimers apply and onto this new chapter. Hopefully it won't disappoint and also the next chapter is already half way finished and I'm hoping to start on an actual publishing timeline. Also, please review if you like. I would love to have some feedback so long as it is respectful.

Chapter Six:

Upon leaving the library James insisted on carrying Arella's bag and books along with his own back to the Common Room. Together they walked back side by side, discussing Divination or just simply joking about this or that. Arella found that she quite enjoyed James's company; he knew how to have fun and made the people around him just feel better about their world, even if only for a moment. As the duo approached the portrait of the Fat Lady they saw Remus leaving the Gryffindor Common Room alone. He looked like he usually did the night of the full moon, pale and a little agitated. The wolf within always fought against him during the day before the full moon and it was almost like he was experiencing PMS.

"Hey Remy," Arella said as she walked up to her best friend, a small smile on her face. She walked right up to him and pulled him into a hug. "I'll come visit you in the morning, Mum sent some fudge for you." Remus returned the hug, smiling at the thought of his favorite cure all.

"Thanks Ella," he replied as he released his friend. "What were you two up to?" He glanced between Arella and James curious to why the pair were together.

"Just some studying Moony," James grinned as he gestured to the books he carried.

"You never go to the library," Remus pointed out bluntly. James just shrugged and replied "I'll see you in the morning Moony." He then started towards the portrait door.

"He helped me with a problem Remus, that's all," Arella explained. "Now you should probably get going or Madam Pomfrey's going to come after you."

"Right, I'll see you tomorrow Ella," Remus allowed Arella to hug him once more before he continued his journey to the Hospital Wing. Arella watched him go for a moment, unhappy at her friend's unfortunate lifestyle. His curse was the one thing she wished her abilities could fix; sadly there was nothing even she could do. She turned back to the portrait door to find James had waited for her. Together the pair went through the door, James had offered up the password, and into the Common Room. There were few people within the Common Room, most were some older students. Arella bid James good night before heading off to her dorm room while James joined Sirius and Peter near the fireplace.

The following morning Arella was accompanied by Sirius, James and Peter to the Hospital Wing to see Remus. In her arms was a neatly wrapped box of fudge that Arella's mother had sent for her childhood friend. The journey was a quiet one; Peter was not much of a morning person and trailed behind the others half asleep. James and Sirius talked together in quiet tones that Arella could barely hear but suspected it involved some new prank. Arella, on the other hand, led the group alone, which she was perfectly happy with. It left her alone with her thoughts.

Upon arrival at the Hospital Wing Madame Pomfrey was just finishing redressing a wound on Remus's shoulder. Remus was barely awake and looked like he'd been beaten to hell. His shoulder had definitely been cut up and he had a new cut on his face that Madam Pomfrey had already healed into a faded scar. Madam Pomfrey noticed the four Gryffindors the moment she had finished with Remus's shoulder.

"Keep it short and no shenanigans," she glared at Sirius and James as she spoke before she smiled at Arella. She knew if Arella was present the shenanigans part of her command would at least be upheld. She then left bustled off to her office on the far side of the Hospital Wing leaving the Gryffindors alone.

"How ya feeling Remus?" Peter asked as the three Marauders created a half circle around their friend, leaving a space next to Remus for Arella.

"Okay," Remus lied; he didn't want his friends to know just how much pain he was in. Last night had been a bad night; his wolf had been very restless and took it out on his body. His scars came from his wolf gnawing on itself from boredom and frustration.

"Liar," Arella murmured as she took her place directly next to him. She placed his box of fudge on the bedside table next to his water. "We'll keep this brief," she added as she picked up the pain potion Madam Pomfrey had left for Remus. She handed him the potion, her face set in a 'just drink it' expression. Remus scowled, causing James, Sirius and Peter to all laugh, but still grudgingly took the potion. Arella smiled for a moment before hugging her friend gently.

"I'll come see you before the Dance, kay?" she said softly. Remus nodded as he returned the hug. "Thanks for the fudge Ella." Arella said welcome before she left the four Marauders alone together. She presumed that Sirius and James would fill the other two in on their newest prank and it was best that she had no part of that.

Morning classes seemed to go by rather quickly, the teachers caught on early that it would be pointless to teach their students anything meaningful. With the Dance later that night and Quidditch the following day none of the students had any real attention span. Lunch found Arella sitting happily in the Great Hall with her friends. Lily had a big smile on her face all morning; she was thoroughly excited to be going with Amos. He apparently got over the yellow paint rather modestly. He truly seemed to like Lily as he came over and joined the four Gryffindor girls when they first sat down. He even conjured a white rose for Lily and put it into her hair. The whole time Lily remained a light shade of pink. He didn't stay long though and soon left to join his friends but he gave Lily a light kiss on the cheek before he left.

"Jeeze Lils Amos is certainly being sweet on you," Mina laughed when Lily's face turned bright red the moment he was gone.

"Hush you!" Lily waved Mina off. "There's nothing wrong with that."

"Not at all Lily, just happy to see you so happy," Mina replied. "Is he gonna wait for you at the portrait door?"

"Yes, we're going to walk down together," Lily replied. "What about Adam? Is he going to wait for you?"

"Yes he is!" Mina giggled. Mina's date, Adam, was a sixth year Ravenclaw. The pair had been dating since the end of last year. "Frank and Sirius will be waiting in the Common Room right?" She looked over to Alice and Arella expectantly. Alice confirmed her own date would be happily waiting for her in the Common Room; Frank Longbottom was a Gryffindor sixth year. He and Alice had been on again and off again since early last year. Sometime over the summer they became on again.

"Sirius and I are meeting at the Great Hall," Arella replied softly, almost a little embarrassed by this. The statement had been given yesterday when she has still been upset with Sirius; not that her friends knew that.

"That prat!" Mina exclaimed loudly. "He should be walking you down!" She intentionally made her voice carry a bit so the three Marauders, who sat further down the table, would be able to hear. The three of them did and Sirius frowned as he looked over at Mina confused.

"It's fine Mina, I told him to meet me there," Arella explained, a little annoyed with her friend. The damn girl was bipolar, just yesterday she was rattling on about how Sirius only wanted in her pants. "Besides it's not like this is a real date. We're only going because of you know what." She made sure to use code this time since there were other students around. After finding out James had heard her yesterday Arella decide better discretion was needed to keep her abilities concealed from the rest of the student body.

"He should still wait for you Ella," Lily added disapprovingly. "If he's going to make you go with him he should at least have the decency to walk down with you." Arella looked between her two friends a little annoyed, it was obvious yesterday that neither girl approved of Sirius and it was beginning to grate on her nerves.

"You two don't even like the idea of me going with him, so why do you even care if we walk down together?" Arella's annoyance was clear in her voice as she spoke. "Just back off, both of you; it's my date to the Dance and if I want to walk down alone I will. It was my choice, not his." Her tone clearly stated that she was done talking about it. With a final glare at her two friends Arella turned her attention to her lunch, thoroughly feeling as if the Dance was already ruined for her. She ate a few more bites but soon felt like her food tasted like cardboard and gave up on it. Mina and Lily both returned to their own meals; each appearing to be annoyed with Arella's situation but knew it wasn't worth the argument. With an annoyed huff Arella shoved her plate away and silently grabbed her bag as she stood up. She quickly mumbled something about going to the Common Room before she turned and left the table and the Great Hall. Unbeknownst to her Sirius stood and followed; shooting a glare at Mina and Lily as he did so.

The moment Arella was gone Alice looked at her two friends a little disgusted. "You two were being complete bloody arses, you know that right?" Alice questioned bluntly, having had enough of her two friends.

"Alice!" Lily exclaimed at the use of her friend's language. Mina, however, smiled as she watched Sirius follow their friend. "At least he followed her," she commented; ignoring Lily's outburst. Alice looked at Mina in shock.

"You planned that?!" Alice's mouth dropped at Mina's comment. Mina glanced at her friend a little amused; Alice currently looked like a gaping fish. Across from her sat Lily looking confused but clearly trying to conceal it.

"Planned what?" Mina questioned before she too got up. The smirk on Mina's face grew as she looked over at Lily. "By the way Ella was right you should apologize to Potter for yelling at him, he was innocent for once." Lily's eyes widened as she realized what Mina had meant.

"You? What?! Why?!" She sputtered, realizing that James Potter could hear everything since his attention was now on the girls. He stood up, a slightly annoyed look on his face. Peter remained where he sat; while curious he didn't want to get too involved and besides his lunch would get cold.

"How else was I going to get you to hate on Black with me? Once you're mad at Potter you're mad at all of the Marauders," Mina explained with a shrug as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"I really think the question of why should be answered Mina," James said as he joined the girls. It didn't go unnoticed to Lily that he had chosen to stand next to her of all people. She glanced up at him the moment she noticed where he stood and glared for a quick moment. Now was not the time though to insist on her ten feet of personal space rule.

"What Potter said, what are you planning and why?" Alice demanded as she stood up too. The pixie haired brunette was utterly baffled as to why Mina was creating such chaos for their friend.

"We all know our dear little Ella and Gryffindor's resident heartthrob both like each other. Think about it, Arella is level headed and never does anything without thinking and then over thinking it through. Black doesn't completely see what's in front of him since he thinks more with his lower brain. Now here comes Ella's friends giving her doubt, making her think and then over think. Giving Black the chance to show her his softer and better side, the one that uses his upstairs brain," Mina explained. "It's all about planting seeds, by this time next year those two will be together and it won't be some fling, it'll be meaningful." Mina smiled brilliantly with triumph as she looked to each of her friends.

"So, wait, you're trying to set those two up?" Lily clarified, still not sure if Mina had gone completely mental or not.

"Oh you make it sound like it's a bad thing! Lily even you have to admit they have chemistry!" Mina exclaimed. Lily pursed her lips for a moment but didn't disagree with Mina. It was true she had seen the way those two acted around each other; they definitely had chemistry. The redhead was still doubtful though, Sirius Black had chemistry with a lot of girls. If the broom closets could talk they'd tell all sorts of stories about his 'chemistry' with said other girls.

"Yes, but did you have to drag everyone else into it?" James asked a little annoyed. He would have helped if Mina had just asked him. Lily, however, looked utterly annoyed. "Did you have to dump yellow paint on Amos?!" She asked moments after James's question; she still felt awful that he had been pranked.

"Again, how else would I get you to hate on the Marauders? Arella had already commanded James to be nice to Amos so I had to improvise," Mina shrugged once again. "Look sorry you guys got involved but you have to agree it's for a good cause."

"You shouldn't have interfered Mina," Alice shocked her head, leave it to Mina and her self-proclaimed match making skills to make things complicated. James shook his head, he wasn't sure if this was a good thing or not. Then he remembered that Lily actually owed him an apology. With a smile he gracefully sat into the seat next to Lily and leaned onto his elbow so he faced her.

"So Lily Flower, about that apology?" He smiled cheekily. Lily narrowed her eyes and turned to glare at him.

"Drop dead Potter," she growled before she stood and left the Great Hall. James looked back to Mina, Alice and Peter. "So Mina perhaps you could help a bloke out and plant seeds with Lily," he suggested, his smile never fading.

"Sorry Potter, I'm afraid you're a lost cause," Mina shook her head and also turned to leave the Great Hall. "Besides you do that well enough on your own," she called back over her shoulder. She smiled as she thought of those seeds, given time she had no doubt James Potter would win over Lily Evans.

Meanwhile….just outside the Great Hall

It didn't take Sirius very long to catch up with Arella, thankfully. He wasn't completely sure what was going on but he knew something was bothering the girl. That and Mina Carter really needed to mind her own bloody business.

"Ella!" he called out as he reached forward and grabbed Arella by the arm, forcing her to stop. She huffed but easily turned around to face him. Her face was a mask of indifference but her clear blue eyes betrayed her. They sparkled a little with unshed tears that she was desperately trying to hold in. Sirius's face softened at the sight of those tears, he truly hated seeing girls cry.

"What was that about?" he asked quietly.

"What was what about?" she responded, avoiding the question. Sirius scowled at her response, although a part of him should have expected it.

"Don't, you know exactly what I'm talking about Danvers," Sirius barked as he narrowed his eyes at Arella.

"What do you want me to say, Black? Mina is entitled to her opinion on the matter," Arella barked back, having no intention of being intimidated by Sirius Black. "Unless there's something else about what happened that is bothering you."

"If you really don't want to go with me then don't, I'm not blackmailing you anymore," Sirius's voice was soft and etched with anger. "So you do have a choice Danvers." He stared down at Arella, his five foot ten frame suddenly felt towering to Arella's own five foot six.

"Why?" she suddenly asked the one question that had been bothering her since all of this had begun. "Why me?" Her clear blue eyes stared directly into Sirius's own grey ones. They challenged him, demanded answers that he wasn't sure he knew. Sirius truly had no idea what possessed him to black mail Arella into being his date. True, it meant that he could have the small break from dating that he wanted and the Hufflepuff girl who had been hinting that he take her had long since backed off. She was going with someone from her own House now. But still, he wasn't sure why he asked her. He didn't know how to respond and for the first time he knew was losing their stare off. He couldn't look into her clear blue eyes and challenge her back.

"I…I don't know," he whispered, unable to lie to her. "I really don't Danvers…Arella, I don't know what to say. I'm sorry if I'm not who you want to go with." Arella didn't respond as she continued to stare directly into Sirius's pure grey eyes, confusion written in her own. She didn't want to admit it aloud and barely did in her head, but the last few weeks having Sirius around had been nice. He was funny, charming and Arella knew that he had the power to hurt her. Mina had proven that already with her comments.

Sirius shifted a little, uncomfortable with the way she was just staring at him. "Look…um I'll still wait for you outside the Great Hall tonight, if you're there great and if not I'll understand," he said quietly before leaving Arella alone and going back into the Great Hall to find James. He wasn't sure what was going to happen tonight but he did know that it would change things between him and Arella.

Arella watched him go feeling uncertain about tonight. He'd given her an out, he'd let her go…that had to mean something right?

Later that night…

Sirius stood just outside the Great Hall watching the stairs in hopes Arella would come down them. The other Gryffindor girls had already come and were now mingling with the other students. He had thought she would have come with her friends but Alice had given him a shake of her head as she passed with Frank Longbottom; an indication that Arella was probably not coming. Still, he had promised to wait for her and so he still stood outside the Great Hall waiting.

"You seem a bit out of character Mr. Black," soft vocal tones said from beside Sirius. He glanced over to see Professor di Orcus standing beside him. Her long green tinted hair flowed from a ponytail that sat on the top of her head and her reddish brown eyes peaked out from behind a plain black mask. She wore dark green robes that seemed to flow around her as she moved. Sirius didn't say anything as he looked at his teacher; truthfully he wasn't sure what to say.

"Perhaps Mr. Black you should go to Miss Danvers instead of waiting for her to come to you," Professor di Orcus offered as she tilted her head towards the stairs. "You may find that actions often speak far louder than words ever can."

"What do you mean?" Sirius asked, a little confused; it was rare for Professor di Orcus to really talk to him outside of class. In fact the Professor rarely left her tower classroom unless it was for her duties as the Head of Hufflepuff. The Professor chuckled a bit before replying "If you have to think about it Mr. Black you may not be ready for the answer."

"No offense Professor but you really love riddles don't you," Sirius stated bluntly, not caring that she was a teacher.

"I am a Seer Mr. Black, my world is made up of riddles," she answered plainly before she turned and walked back into the Great Hall; leaving as silently as she had appeared. Sirius thought for a moment about what she had said about actions being louder than words. He could continue to wait; his night would thus be spent here at the entrance of the Great Hall being bored out of his mind. He could go inside, find a willing girl to dance with that could easily lead to him having a bit of fun in a broom closet. Or, he goes back to his dorm room grab his broom and fly right into Arella's dorm room and surprise her. The first two were the easiest and the second probably more to the standard people expected of him. The third, well that one could lead to an interesting night.

Arella stood in front of her mirror staring at herself in her costume. She had ultimately decided not to bother going; crowds tended to not be her thing anyways and she was more than happy to use that as her excuse. True, it was probably rude to not inform Sirius of her decision to not go at all but she figured he'd find an all too willing partner at the Dance.

"It was stupid to bother making this thing," Arella muttered as she stripped the dress off and changed into a pair of sweats and a t-shirt. The dress was then folded, shrunken and placed inside Arella's trunk. Grumpily Arella grabbed her favorite book, Pride and Prejudice, and flopped down onto her bed. She'd read the book several times and it was her go to feel good book. Hopefully it would break her bad mood. She'd gotten through the first chapter when she heard a tapping on one of the dorm room windows. Cautiously, Arella looked over the top of her book and glanced around the room. No one had entered, she'd have felt them enter the space of the dorm, yet there was a distinct tapping noise. It grew a little louder and quicker as Arella marked her spot in her book and set it down on her bed. The window in question sat between Lily and Alice's beds and was a little diagonal from her own. Grabbing her wand Arella walked over to the window and opened it.

"Bout time!" Sirius's voice erupted the moment the window opened, scaring the wits out of Arella. Instinctively she sent out a stunning curse out that Sirius barely moved out of the way for.

"Oil! What was that for!?" he questioned as he brought his broom up to the window edge.

"A bloke was at my window shouting what'd you expect me to do? Invite him for tea?" Arella asked bewildered.

"At least ask who it is before ya start throwing curses," Sirius retorted. Arella stared at Sirius still bewildered; he looked quite the sight with his black dress robes all disheveled from the wind, his hair blew around his face and the mask he had been wearing pushed up onto the top of his head.

"What are you doing here?" Arella inquired as she took the sight of him in. Dear Merlin why on Earth did he have to look so attractive. _Whoa! Where did that come from?_

"I got tired of waiting for you so I figured we can have our own dance," Sirius replied, not thinking about what he could possibly be implying. Arella's eyes narrowed and she used her powers to grab hold of Sirius's broom and jerk him away from the window. Sirius's eyes widened as he grabbed hold of his broom tightly to prevent himself from falling.

"What the bloody hell are you doing?!" he demanded as he clung to his broom.

"Have our own dance? Really, do you honestly think I'd do anything with you?" Arella demanded back as she jerked the broom to the side. "I'm not that kind of girl Black."

"Not that kind of…? Oh bloody hell Danvers! You really think that I came here to shag you!" Sirius snapped.

"Considering you'll practically shag anything with two legs and boobs! Of course I do!" Arella snapped back as she twisted her wrist and flipped the broom upside down. Sirius gave a shout as he tightened his grip on the broom to prevent himself from falling to his death.

"Are you trying to kill me!?" he shouted hysterically. "I'm not here to shag you woman!"

"A likely story," Arella replied as she flicked her wrist again and caused the broom to turn into a vertical angle and begin to spin.

"It's the truth!" Sirius cried out. "And you're making me sick Danvers!"

"Poor Sirius Black, it's too bad you're at my mercy," Arella smirked, thoroughly enjoying the control she had over Sirius. She flicked her wrist again and willed the broom to spin in a different direction.

"Oh bloody hell woman! Let me go!" Sirius groaned loudly. Arella couldn't help the smile that formed; she was having fun with this. "You sure you want to let go Sirius?" Arella called out.

"Yes!" Sirius shouted.

"Okay," Arella flicked her wrist again and ripped the broom from Sirius's hands and for a brief moment allowed Sirius to start to fall before flicking her wrist once more and used the broom fling him into the dorm room. Sirius tumbled into the room, rolling on the floor for a moment before he finally stopped right next to Arella's trunk and lay motionless; his broom then landed unceremoniously on top of him.


End file.
